Book One: A Scorched Soul
by Fwalandra
Summary: Hize is a girl whom was banished from the Fire Nation two years ago. Now she is traveling with her childhood friend Prince Zuko, to help him regain his honor. But she has no intention of returning to the hell-hole of a nation that cast her out. Zuko/OC.
1. The Boy in The Iceberg

A/N: Thank you for taking the time to read through this. This is my first Avatar: TLA fan fiction. I tried hard to put in a lot of thought and story into Hize; so feed back through reviews would be very much appreciated.

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Concentration riddled the girl's face, her sepia-gold eyes flicking from the wooden board before her to the older gentleman seated across from her with a large, satisfied grin on his face. She narrowed her eyes as she bit her lip softly, her mind quickly processing the situation she was currently in. It wasn't a good situation, especially one to be in while in front of her crew. She was hesitant as she reached a pale hand out from her long, violet sleeve to slide a tile over three spaces on the board, her finger resting on the top of it as she studied the board once again. She let her finger off and placed her hands back into her lap.

The older man across from her chuckled heartily before reaching out and performing a similar move, a look of anguish immediately crossing the girl's face. She should've saw that coming. The older man continued his chuckle, his hand on his stomach in attempt to contain it.

"Hize, you have gotten better!" He laughed out, grinning fondly at the fifteen-year-old girl across from him. "You almost had me with your earlier move, but you lost sight of your goal along the way." He said, his voice full of wisdom and kindness. Hize, the girl in question, sighed as she folded her hands within her sleeves. She closed her eyes and stood up gently.

"I suppose you are right. But soon I will defeat you, Iroh." She smiled, peering down at him between her dark lashes. He chuckled and stood as well, patting the young girl on her back fiercely.

"In due time, Hize. In due time." The two then made their way to the deck of the Fire Nation ship they were currently on, hoping to get some fresh air. A rush of chilled air hit Hize in the face sharply, causing her to draw in her breath. She willed the power within her to heat up her skin a bit more than usual to keep her warm as she stared around the floating ice that littered the ocean they were traveling in. She noted out of the corner of her eye, Iroh go and sit down at the outdoor game board they had on the ship's deck.

As she grew bored of her surroundings, her eyes rested upon the one she was traveling with. The banished Fire Nation Prince, Zuko. He was glaring out at the sea, leaning against the edge of the ship. For two years Hize has been with him, helping him search for the Avatar. It was the only way his honor, as well as hers, could be restored. But she didn't care about her honor, she was only there because she pledged her allegiance to Prince Zuko three years ago. She quietly made her was towards him, her pale violet gown flowing in the gentle breeze that rocked the southern sea. She stopped beside him, mimicking his stance. Her gaze slowly moved from the sea to the boy beside her. She wasn't even sure if he even registered that she was beside him, but that's how it normally was.

She felt the wind pick up a bit and her gaze drifted beyond Zuko's shoulder, her eyes widening at the sight. A blue beam was shooting straight into the air, and she almost immediately knew what it was. She could feel it in her gut. "Z-Zuko…" she whispered out, her voice barely audible over the wind. He glanced at her, scowling before he saw her gaze go beyond him. He followed it and took in a sharp in take of breath, taking on a semi-vengeful stance as he stared at the beam.

Hize could just imagine the shock on his face as she stared at the back of his head. She watched as his posture changed and just barely heard him whisper, "Finally…" Her eyes were immediately downcast, regretting that she wasn't as thrilled as Zuko was. Zuko turned quickly, eyes on his Uncle Iroh.

"Uncle, do you realize what this means?" He questioned, astonished that they had finally located what could've been the Avatar. Iroh, who sat with the steaming cup of tea he had brought out with him, had started up a card game with himself.

"I won't get to finish my game?" He questioned, looking up at his nephew. Hize smiled, bringing her long-sleeve covered hand to cover her soft giggle. Zuko ignored her.

He scowled softly, before speaking. "It means my search…" He turned around to face the light again, "is about to come to and end." Hize's eyes were still on Iroh, who didn't look enthused at all as he stared down at his cards. He let out an audible sigh and shook his head softly. Zuko continued, pointing at the light. "That light came from an incredibly powerful source." His voice turned a bit fierce as he tried to get Iroh to become enthused. "It had to be him!"

Hize closed her eyes and pushed off from the edge of the ship, walking towards the door that led inside. Iroh glanced up at his nephew. "Or… it's just the celestial lights." He said, waving his cards up in the air to make a point. "We've been down this road before, Prince Zuko." He said, going back to his game. "I don't want you to get too excited over nothing." Hize leaned against the wall beside the door, waiting to see what Zuko would order of her and the crew.

"Please, sit. Why don't you enjoy a cup of calming jasmine tea?" Iroh suggested of his nephew. Hize had to admit, jasmine tea sounded amazing right now. But not as amazing as a cup of ginger root tea. Zuko turned around quickly, yelling.

"I don't need any calming tea! I need to capture the Avatar!" He glanced up at the helmsman. "Helmsman! Head a course for the light!" He pointed in the direction of the light, not that he needed too. Iroh said nothing as he placed another wooden card down, the wind picking up greatly. Hize stayed out there for a minute before sharing a glance with Zuko. She knew exactly what he was asking just by looking into his golden eyes. She shook her head, denying the request immediately before slipping inside, leaving the prince to fume internally over her decision.

* * *

The following evening, Hize stepped out onto the deck; clad in a darker purple gown. Her eyes focused in on Prince Zuko practicing his fire bending while Iroh watched on. As he attacked the two guards that were training with him, Hize made her way towards an Iroh that looked semi-frustrated. Iroh stood just as Hize reached him and started to speak to Zuko.

"No. Power in Firebending comes from the breath, not the muscles." He chastised. Hize remembered back to when her father tried to teach her Firebending. She got some of the basics, but after that… she just couldn't get the hang of it. Iroh continued, "The breath becomes energy in the body. The energy extends past your limbs and becomes fire." He said, throwing a fire punch to make his example real. Hize pouted softly, wishing her father could have explained Firebending like that. "Get it right this time." Zuko did not look pleased.

"Enough." He advanced towards Iroh. "I've been drilling this sequence all day. Teach me the next set." He demanded. "I'm more than ready." But Iroh had something else to say about that.

"No! You're impatient." Iroh said, arms crossed behind his back. That was a fact everyone on this ship knew. "You have yet to master your basics." He said, sitting down on the wooden chair behind him once again. Hize was standing off to the side now, out of the way of any further training. "Drill it again!" Iroh ordered, causing Zuko to growl out in anger. He then turned and fiercely attacked one of the guards that were so nicely training with him. He then turned back towards a rather displeased Iroh.

"The sages tell us that the Avatar is the last Airbender. He must be over a hundred years old by now. He's had a century to master the four elements. I'll need more than basic Firebending to defeat him. You WILL teach me the advanced set." Zuko ordered, scowling down at his uncle. Iroh was hesitant for a moment before speaking.

"Very well. But first, I must finish my roast duck." He said, cheerfully reaching down to the bowl of food beside him. Angrily shocking Zuko, which caused Hize to laugh audibly as Iroh began to eat happily. Zuko's gaze went to her and she closed her mouth into a small smirk. Zuko growled, the small gesture setting the boy off. He suddenly sent a blast of fire towards the girl, whom was standing near the edge of the ship. Her gaze didn't break with his as she swiftly brough his own fire into her hands and over the edge of the ship, causing it to crash into a small sheet of ice beside the ship. She took a few steps towards him, eyebrow arched.

"Iroh is right, Prince Zuko. You are too impatient and too hot-tempered." She said, voice soft and gentle. "Unlike him, I would not agree to your order of moving to the advanced set." She said, crossing her arms in front of her. Zuko glowered.

"Then it's a good thing you're not my teacher then, isn't it, Hize?" Zuko spat out at her, causing a small string to snap inside her as she reached up her sleeve a bit and pulled out a small dagger, shooting it towards Zuko. It missed his face by mere inches. Neither teen faltered.

"You forget, Prince Zuko. You may be more skilled at Firebending than I am, but I am more skilled with weaponry and my fists and you are." She stated the comment harmlessly, causing Zuko's hand to twitch. He smirked.

"You would not attack me, Hize. How would that make you appear, attacking your prince?" He asked, scowling. Hize straightened up, tense. She narrowed her eyes at him viciously before growling out. Her clenched fists rested at her sides and were steaming as she became even more enraged. She turned sharply on her heel before exiting the deck, heading down to her private quarters.

'Prince my ass.' She growled mentally, passing by guards along the way. She slammed her bedroom door behind her, sitting down in front of her vanity to stare at her monotone expression.

Hize remained in her room for the rest of the night, until a pounding on her door brought her out of the book she was engrossed in. She sighed slightly as she closed the textbook, placing it on her bed as she stood up. She opened the door and came face-to-face with one of the guards. "Yes?" She said, her voice polite and soft.

"Prince Zuko has ordered me to inform you that he has found the Avatar." The guard said before bowing at the girl before him and leaving. Hize stared out into the hallway for a minute, angry that Zuko would dare assume she would help out in this. She closed her door and headed to her wardrobe, ready to put on more battle appropriate attire.


	2. The Avatar Returns

A/N: Truthfully; I'm surprised this story got that much attention. I received two reviews and several people adding it to their alert list. Thanks, guys. I was going to wait a while to update it; but all the positive feedback encouraged me to make the update sooner. ;D Thanks. 3 Please, remember to leave a review. Tell me how you like it/don't like it. :D

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Hize stood there, staring into her wardrobe, eyes locked on the garb she wore while training in the Fire Nation. Something she never wanted to see again. Something she hadn't dared look at for two years. Her eyes closed as she made up her mind; this garb was also something she would never put on again. She gently closed the door to her wardrobe, fixing the neckline of the formal gown she wore. She then took in a deep breath and exited her room, only to see Prince Zuko glaring at her.

He was clad in his armor, ready for battle; and he didn't look too pleased. His eyes slowly traveled over Hize's body, causing her to shiver slightly. He brought his face up into a scowl and glared into her eyes. "You are not ready for battle. Are you defying my orders, Hize?" He questioned the fifteen year old. She crossed her arms over her chest defensively.

"I refuse to take part in this. You are the one searching for the Avatar, not I. You shall be the one to go out there and fight." She confirmed her thoughts out loud to Zuko, causing him to scowl even more. He looked like he was about to yell at her, until a strange look passed over his features.

"Very well. But next time, I expect you to listen to what I say. Or else." He said, turning on his heel and marching down the hall. Hize twitched, poking her head out of the door.

"Or else, what?" She demanded, growling. He stopped and turned back at her, his eyes narrow slyly as a smirk crossed his face. He didn't need to stay anything for Hize to realize what he was implying. She shut her mouth and glared at him, watching her prince as he turned back around and continued down the hall.

Frustrated, Hize slammed her door and flopped onto the bed that was behind her. She sat there, huffing slightly as she began to cross and uncross her arms. She shifted uncomfortably for almost five minutes until she felt the ship stop. She bit her lip as she concentrated on being angry and stuffing down her curiosity.

All her efforts failed as she stood up with a curse and headed out of her room. She passed a few soldiers on her way out, all of which bowed to her. She ignored them and pushed open the door to the main deck. Hize wobbled slightly as she felt the drawbridge below being lowered. She quickened her pace and leaned against the edge of the ship; seeing a frightened Water Tribe below. She lowered herself into a crouched position out of sight, but to where she could still see what was happening.

She would intervene if she had to. It was her duty; to protect and serve the Prince of the Fire Nation; banished or not. And she hated that about her.

Her eyes narrowed as she watched Zuko and two other soldiers walk down the bridge towards the Water Tribe, hoping he wouldn't cause too much of a scene. As several other soldiers started to file down after Zuko, a boy about Hize's age from the Water Tribe went running towards Zuko, yelling a battle cry as he held up his weapon. Hize snorted loudly as Zuko easily kicked him to the side, causing the boy to get stuck face first in a pile of snow. She knew then that she didn't need to intervene, but she would stick around just to see if anyone else got kicked.

Zuko began to talk to the tribe, but Hize couldn't make out what he said. He suddenly shot his hand forward and grabbed the oldest lady of the tribe; causing Hize to stand up straight. She may be forced to obey and serve Zuko, but she wasn't going to stand for innocent bullying. He quested them loudly, but Hize still couldn't hear clearly. Then he thrust the lady forward and paused before sending a fire blast above the tribes' heads, causing their fear to increase.

Suddenly, Hize heard a familiar battle cry and saw the boy running at Zuko again. She groaned slightly, knowing this probably wouldn't end well for the poor Water Nationer. She was right; Zuko easily flipped the boy over his head and caused him to go crashing into the ground roughly. "Oooh." Hize cried out, knowing that had to have hurt. Zuko sent a blast of fire at him, but he boy rolled to the side and thrust his boomerang at the Fire Prince. That caught Zuko off-guard, but he was able to dodge it. His eyes traveled after the boomerang, but caught something else, a curious Hize watching over him. She tried to duck to hide, but knew the prince had already seen her. He did nothing but turn back around and angrily glare at the other boy.

A child from the village said something to the Water Tribe boy and tossed him a spear. The older boy then took off towards Zuko, hoping to spear him down. Zuko didn't even flinch as the boy came within inches of his body, before ramming his arm up and breaking the spearhead off of the pole. Hize grinned, recognizing that move as one she had taught him a year or so back. Zuko suddenly snatched the pole from the other boy and jabbed him in the head with it three times. Hize bit her lip to keep from laughing out, bringing her hand to her mouth gently. She was too distracted by her giggle fit to she what happened after that, looking up only when the boys' boomerang came back and hit Zuko in the back of the head.

With that, Hize willingly let out a laugh, burying her face in her arm in hopes those below didn't hear her. She felt tears come to her eyes as her giggle fit became even worse. She was suddenly silenced when Zuko yelled.

"You're the Avatar?" He questioned, obviously not expecting what he saw. Hize poked her head over the edge of the ship to see a young boy standing in front of Zuko, wearing a yellow and red outfit. She blinked. Well, he was certainly younger than expected.

She watched as they engaged in a fight, Zuko on the offense and the Avatar on the defense. Suddenly, the Avatar stopped. Hize wished she could hear what they were saying, because she sure was curious now. There was a moment of conversation before two soldiers grabbed the Avatar and led him inside their ship.

"So he came willingly, eh?" She thought out loud before standing up and quickly making a dash for the door to go back inside. She entered the ship and leaned against the wall, eyes wide as realization hit her. They had the Avatar. Everything was over, she would have to go back to the Fire Nation now. She would have to become what she hated most…

She slowly drug herself to her room, passing a worried Iroh along the way. She gently closed the door behind her and sat down on her bed, stunned. She leaned back and placed her left arm over her eyes as she thought. They had the Avatar. She was happy for Zuko; he would be able to get what he wanted, what he deserved. She felt selfish; how could she care only about what would happen to her and not Zuko. After this long, she should care more about Zuko than herself. She felt her eyes grow heavy as she slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Hize jumped to a start, hearing a commotion outside of her door. She stepped outside, just in time to see a Fire Nation soldier fall to the ground and the Avatar escape around the corner. She rubbed her eyes for a moment before grinning. Maybe there was hope after all. The soldier sat up and gave her glanced at her. She shrugged.

"Don't ask me; I'm not the one who captured him." She said casually, leaning against the doorframe. He shook his head and took off his helmet. His shaggy black hair fell out and he rubbed his head. Hize grinned, holding a pale hand out to her friend.

"You okay, Ziva?" She asked, helping the soldier to his feet. He tossed his hair out of his gold eyes and grinned at her.

"Of course. You think a little fall to the ground would hurt me?" He asked, smirking. Hize bit her lip and looked away from him.

"Weeelllll…" She teased, causing him to gain a look of anguish on his face. She giggled and patted his shoulder. "Just kidding, Ziva. You better pretend to get back to work before Zuko shows up and freaks out on everyone for losing the Avatar." She shrugged, apathetic about the situation. He gave her an odd look.

"You know, you could help out." Ziva muttered, putting his helmet back on. He turned around and headed in the direction that the Avatar went.

"Nah, I'll just sit back and watch the action from the sidelines." She called to him, smiling. He simply put a hand up in recognition as he turned the corner. She stood there for a moment before exiting her room and heading outside. She met up with Iroh while they were walking down the main hall and both stood there as they saw a large, flying bison take off into the sky. Almost simultaneously, both of them rubbed their eyes and stared at it. Then Hize heard the clanking of the anchor on the side of the ship. She casually made her way over there and glanced down, seeing Zuko hanging there. He was kind of close to the main deck, so she leaned over and held out her hand. He grasped it and tried to pull himself up with her help. She felt herself stumble a bit, but was steadied by Iroh as he showed up behind her, helping Zuko up as well.

Zuko glared at the escaping group and yelled, "Shoot them down!" Iroh and Zuko began to perform the same Firebending technique and shot it off at the bison. But the Avatar deflected it with his Airbending and caused it to crash into the ice cliff beside them. Hize's eyes widened as it began to crumble. Zuko gasped, as did Hize. She brought her arm up to protect her, but was slightly stunned when Zuko pushed her behind him and brought his own arms up to shield both of them from the falling ice. He began to gently back them up and they were able to safely avoid the falling ice. Hize let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in and grasped at her heart, happy to still be alive.

"Good news for the Fire Lord." Iroh began, "The Fire Nations greatest threat, is just a little kid." Iroh stood, as did Zuko.

"That kid, Uncle, just did this." He said, referring to the fact that half of their ship was now trapped under ice. "I won't underestimate him again." Zuko promised.

"Dig the ship out and follow them!" He said, ordering the soldiers. But three soldiers were currently frozen to the ship, thanks to the Water Bender that was with the Avatar. Hize giggled softly. "As soon as you're done with that… " Zuko said softly.


	3. The Southern Air Temple

A/N: Thanks again for reviewing, guys. You don't know how much it means to me to see how much people enjoy my writing. :] I decided to do another update, as I've been browsing around Gaia Online for people to draw Hize. Soon, I'll have a link up that will take you to her photo gallery so you can see what she looks like! ;D Now, on with the story~!

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The dingy, damaged Fire Nation ship came to a slow stop on the docks; on the Fire Nation docks. Their ship shook slightly as their bow began to lower, bringing down the landing exit. Hize stepped out behind Iroh and Zuko, glaring at the Fire Nation Cruiser's that rested around their small scout ship. She remained behind Iroh as they descended their walkway, lifting up her long, tan skirt so she didn't step on it. As he stepped off of the landing exit, Zuko spoke.

"Uncle, I want the repairs made as quickly as possible. I don't want to stay too long and risk losing his trail." Zuko said firmly, continuing towards the Fire Nation camp that was ahead of them. Iroh spoke, his voice in a drawl.

"You mean the Avatar?" Iroh questioned, though he already knew the answer. Hize resisted the urge to bring her hand to her head in shame, but remained to Iroh's side as Zuko turned around and confronted his uncle.

"Don't mention his name on these docks." He scolded; Hize glanced around and noticed a familiar face heading towards them. She immediately scowled. "Once word gets out that he's alive, every Fire Bender will be out looking for him. And I don't want anyone getting in the way." Zuko said fiercely, staring down at his uncle. Hize resisted the urge to verbally growl as the oncoming person spoke.

"Getting in the way of what, Prince Zuko?" Captain Zhao asked cockily as he approached the three, his arms behind his back. Zuko crossed his arms, unhappy to see the man, whom he greatly disliked.

"Captain Zhao." Zuko said in recognition. Zhao smirked, straightening himself up.

"It's Commander now. And General Iroh," he leaned down to Iroh's level, "great hero of our nation." Iroh's eyes brightened considerably as he spoke.

"Retired General." He responded, bowing his head respectfully. Zhao spoke once again.

"The Fire Lord's brother and son are welcome guests any time." His eyes drifted back to Hize, narrowing slightly as a sly smirk crossed his features. "As well as the young Hize, it's been a while since I last saw you." Hize remained silent, only stared at the Commander with obvious disdain. "What brings you to my harbor?" He asked, curious. The three travelers glanced back at their obviously ruined ship, Hize rolling her eyes at how obvious it was.

"Our ship is being repaired." Iroh said, gesturing to the worn and bruised scouter. Zhao raised his eyebrows.

"That's quite a bit of damage." He said, wanting to know how their ship received such wounds.

"Yes.." Zuko drawled out, raising a finger. "You wouldn't believe what happened." He glanced down at Iroh, and then spoke. "Uncle! Tell Commander Zhao what happened." Iroh blinked and glanced up at Zuko, surprised and slightly irritated.

"Yes." Iroh spoke, raising a finger and an eyebrow. "I will do that." Zuko looked bored as he waited for Iroh to explain, and Hize stood behind them with her arms crossed. "It was incredible." Iroh started; using his hands a she spoke to emphasize his story. "What, did we crash or something?" He asked Zuko semi-quietly. Hize coughed slightly before speaking.

"Yes! Right into an Earth Kingdom ship!" She supplied the rest of the story, her face showing to trace of lying. It was so good, Zhao almost believed her.

"Really?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing. He seemed a little surprised at that. Hize nodded, not breaking his gaze. Then he smirked. "You must regale me with all the thrilling details. Join me for a drink?" He asked, getting in Zuko's face.

"Sorry, but we have to go." Zuko said, turning away from Zhao. Hize agreed fiercely within her head and went to follow after him, until a heavy hand was placed on her and Zuko's shoulder.

"Prince Zuko, Hize. Show Commander Zhao your respect." He said, removing his hands and turning towards the now overly cocky Zhao. "We would be honored to join you. Do you have any ginseng tea? It's my favorite."

Hize stood there for a moment, watching Iroh walk away with Zhao. Zuko let out a growl and clenched his fists, thrusting his arms down and causing fire to burst out from them. Hize's eyes traveled to Zuko. He glanced over at her and sighed, turning to follow his uncle. Hize followed behind him silently, noting that he slowed his pace down to where they walked side by side, glaring at any of the soldiers that looked at them.

* * *

Hize was leaning against the wall, her eyes closed as she tried to tune out Zhao, who was informing Zuko of the Fire Nations plans in the war. War, war, war. That's all those people can think of. She thought bitterly, scowling as she crossed her arms over her chest. She jumped when she heard the sound of crashing, opening her eyes to see several long arms at her feet. She blinked blandly before glancing up at Iroh. He looked at her innocently, causing her to giggle slightly.

"My fault entirely." He said, backing away from the scene. Hize quickly stepped over the weapons and following him towards the corner. She leaned against the wall beside him and sighed.

"How much longer are we going to be here?" She asked quietly, wanting to just leave already. It's not like Zhao was kind enough to provide the only woman in the group her own seat. Iroh looked up at her and smiled, closing his eyes.

"Patience, Hize, patience." He chided softly, leaning against the wall as well. Hize merely pouted and kept her eyes on the two Fire Nationers that were before her talking. She took a small step forward as Commander Zhao stood up; leaning down to get into Zuko's face. Suddenly, Zuko stood.

"Come on Uncle, Hize. We're going." He said, stalking towards the door. Hize smiled, content that they were leaving. She placed her arms in her sleeves casually and sighed, heading towards the door as well.

"Finally." She said audibly, wanting to get a cup of ginger root tea as soon as she got aboard their vessel. They were stopped by the guards in front of the exit blocking them from leaving with their long arms. Hize furrowed her eyebrows, suddenly becoming on edge and beginning to get deeply irate with the lovely Commander behind her.

"Commander Zhao." A guard said as he walked towards the Commander. "We interrogated the crew as you instructed. They confirmed that Prince Zuko had the Avatar in custody, but let him escape." Hize looked down at the floor, cursing softly under her breath, as she knew they were going to be there for a while. She could just feel Zhao's smirk as he spoke to them.

"Now, remind me again how exactly was your ship damaged?" Zhao demanded, walking up behind Hize and leaning to speak into her ear, as she was the one who told them about their 'Earth Nation encounter'. Hize tensed, scowling as she turned around to face the Commander. Commander Zhao grabbed her by the arm, the guards grabbing Zuko. He roughly sat her down in one of the chairs behind him, Zuko in another. He stood in front of them, his eyes shifting from Zuko to Hize.

"Well?" He asked, impatient. Hize brought her left hand up to rub her temple. There was a long period of silence before Zhao growled. "You will tell me, I order it." Hize scowled and snapped.

"There was a kid. He did Air Bending. He was the Avatar. We got him. He got away. What more do you need to know?" She questioned. One of the guards behind her gripped her shoulder roughly, silently commanding her respect. Zhao only snarled out a hollow chuckle.

"From the beginning, girl." He demanded. Hize blinked, tilting her head. Her mouth forming an 'o' shape.

"I see. Well. It was about six in the morning when I woke up. The sun was shining and it was chilly out, as we were in a rather frosty area. After I was fully awake and alert, I then changed into my formal attire, as I always do." Hize was silenced as Zuko held his hand out in front of her. He glared at Zhao, knowing that if Hize kept up her attitude, it might end badly.

"Enough, Hize." He commanded. She glanced over at him before leaning back in her chair, crossing her legs elegantly. She said nothing else as Zuko turned his attention to Zhao and began to relay the entire, proper story to him. After the said story was done and over, Zhao began to pace, glancing from Hize to Zuko to Iroh.

"So a twelve year old boy bested you and your Fire Benders?" He questioned, almost amused. "You're more pathetic than I thought." Hize gripped the arms of her chair, biting her lip. Zuko spoke.

"I under estimated him once, but it will not happen again." He vowed, eyes drifting to the ground.

"No it will not." Zhao said firmly, causing Hize and Zuko to look up at him. "Because you won't have a second chance." Zuko was infuriated.

"Commander Zhao! I've been hunting the Avatar for two years and I—" He was cut off by Zhao turning around angrily, a trail of fire following his hand as he thrust it to his side.

"And you have failed! Capturing the Avatar is too important to leave in a teenagers hands." He said, his eyes towering down on Zuko. He shot Hize a look, including her in the comment. "He's mine now." He said, his eyes returning to Zuko. Zuko grit his teeth, gripping the arms of the chair. He suddenly lunged at Zhao, but was stopped by the two guards behind him. He struggled momentarily before making eye contact with Hize, silently ordering her.

She reacted immediately, thrusting herself out of the chair she was in and at Zhao. Another guard grabbed her arm quickly, but she pulled her arm fiercely in front of her, shocking the guard and causing him to lose his balance and fall to the ground. Her hair swished behind her as she quickly reached into her sleeve and pulled out a small blade, aiming it at Zhao's throat. The guard the she had bested grabbed her skirt and pulled hard, causing her to fall to the ground. He immediately gripped her around the chest, her arms pinned behind her and the blade now on the floor. She growled as she struggled against him. Zhao chuckled at the display.

"Keep them here." He said before walking out. The guard that had Hize threw her back into her chair and she stood up quickly, ready to attack. But Iroh cleared his throat. She paused, fist in the air. She glared at the guard before sitting down quietly, crossing her legs and arms once again. Zuko felt a wave of anger wash over him and he kicked the table that was between him and Iroh to the ground. Iroh, always the lovely gentleman, spoke.

"More tea, please?" He asked, smiling. Hize grumbled to herself as Zuko was forced to sit back down as well. She glanced over at him, softly apologizing under her breath. He shared a glance and he nodded, accepting the apology.

It had been almost an hour since Zhao left, and Hize had calmed down considerably. She sat next to Iroh now, sipping some ginger root tea that the Fire Nation was so kind enough to provide her. It made her feel better, calmer as well. She didn't look up as Zhao walked in and spoke, only continued to drink her tea happily.

"My search party is ready. Once I'm out to sea, my guards will escort you back to your ship. And you'll be free to go." Hize's eyes opened at that, happy to be able to get off of this port. She watched Zuko as his eyes traveled to the side, staring at Zhao through the corner of his eyes.

"Why?" He questioned. "Are you worried I'm going to try and stop you?" Zhao laughed, obviously amused with Zuko's question.

"You, stop me? Impossible." He said, a smug look on his face. Zuko stood.

"Don't underestimate me, Zhao! I will capture the Avatar before you." The two stared at each other until Iroh stood.

"Prince Zuko, that's enough." Iroh commanded, having enough of Zuko's attitude for one day.

"You can't compete with me." Zhao sneered. "I have hundreds of war ships under my command. And you… You're just a banished Prince; no home, no allies. Your own father doesn't even want you." Zuko glared at Zhao.

"You're wrong. Once I deliver the Avatar to my father, he will welcome me home with honor. And restore my restore my rightful place on the throne." With that said, Hize stood up casually, placing her teacup down on the table in front of her. She could feel the tension in the air as the two continued their conversation, and she was ready for anything that came her way.

"If your father really wanted you home, he would've let you return by now. Avatar or no Avatar. But in his eyes, you are a failure and a disgrace to the Fire Nation. " Zhao said, surprisingly level headed.

"That's not true." Zuko said, almost as if he was trying to reassure himself about it.

"You have the scar to prove it." Hize's head snapped up at the mention of the scar, anger beginning to course through her. Zuko wasn't the only one affected on that day, and Zhao knew it; his eyes giving Hize a knowing smirk. Zuko growled out, lunging to be in Zhao's face.

"Maybe you'd like one to match?" Zuko challenged.

"Is that a challenge?" Zhao asked the obvious. Hize knew where this was going, and reached out to stop Zuko, but Iroh placed his hand on hers, shaking his head.

"An Agni Kai. At sunset." He challenged, his hands in fists.

"Very well." Zhao agreed. "It's a shame your father won't be here to watch me humiliate you. I guess your girlfriend and Uncle will do." He said, turning and leaving the tent they were in.

"Prince Zuko…" Iroh spoke. "Have you forgotten what happened the last time you dueled a master?" Hize looked away, also affected by that statement. She began to feel a familiar searing pain in her back and brought her hand to her mouth to keep from crying out.

"I will never forget." Zuko said solemnly, determined to face Zhao. After the pain in her back subsided, Hize stepped forward.

"Zuko… I really don't think you should do this." She said, her eyes trained on his scar so he'd take the hint. He stared at her, but said nothing, turning away. He was doing this for her as much as himself. Hize sighed, knowing he wouldn't listen to her.

"Very well. But if anything happens—"

"You will not interfere. Not again." Zuko said, turning sharply to glare at Hize. Her eyes were immediately downcast, almost ashamed. She bit her lip but said nothing; only waited quietly until sunrise.

* * *

Sunrise was here and Hize was nervous. She stared at the half-nude Prince in front of her before handing him the traditional drape that was worn in an Agni Kai. He said nothing as he slipped it on. He closed his eyes for a moment before walking into the large clearing that they were using for their duel. Iroh pulled Hize to the side gently. Zhao and Zuko took their kneeling stances and waited. Iroh approached Zuko and spoke.

"Remember your Fire Bending basics, Prince Zuko. They are your greatest weapons." He said, calm as usual. Zuko eyes were closed as he spoke.

"I refuse to let him win." Then he stood, turning towards Zhao. His drape fell to the ground and Hize bit her lip, pushing herself against the wall. Zhao stood as well and spoke.

"This will be over quickly." Hize clenched her fists, hoping Zuko would punch Commander Zhao in his face for her during the duel. They both then took their stances and waited. Zuko attacked first, gathering his flames in his hands as he started toward Zhao. He took a large step forward before thrusting the flames at the older man. Zhao easily dodged before having to dodge more flaming onslaught from the Prince. Zuko put a lot of his energy into creating a large ball of flames that went directly at Zhao. Zhao didn't bother moving as his arms form an 'x' and he deflected the flames. Hize took note of Zuko's labored breathing and furrowed her brows.

Zuko scowled before pivoting his body and kicking a blast of flames at Zhao, who swiftly sliced through it. Zuko kept sending flame after flame, but Zhao kept dodging and slicing. Hize had to admit, though. Zuko's form was almost artistic as he moved. Zhao finally sent an attack out, slamming his hands on the ground and covering the ground with flames. There was a momentary stare off as Iroh yelled out to Zuko about the basics. Zhao sent a blast at the Prince, who successfully sliced through it. Zhao took a step forward and shot his fists out; sending a double blast a Zuko. Zuko cut through it. Again, Zhao performed his move, and Zuko cut through it. But then Zhao sent a fierce flame at the Prince, knocking him back and to the ground. He groaned as he started to sit up; but was surprised to see Zhao already in the air coming at him.

Zhao landed in front of him and sent a flame directly at Zuko's face. "Zuko!" Hize cried out, moving to intervene, but Iroh grabbed her arm. Zuko suddenly swung his body around, his weight propelling himself into a semi-spin before he landed solidly on his feet. He smirked before sliding his foot forward, flames shooting out at Zhao. Zhao was caught off guard and stumbled back, but Zuko continued his maneuver. Hize was gripping Iroh's sleeve as she leaned forward to watch, anticipation all over her face.

Zuko sent a flame-kick at the Commander, successfully backing him up even more. Zuko was relentless in his attack, sending one final kick-flame towards his superior, knocking him to the ground. Zhao rolled over and tried to get up, seeing Zuko in front of him, ready to attack again. They shared a stare before Zhao yelled.

"Do it!" He commanded, wanting Zuko to attack him. Hize hoped it wouldn't and her eyes widened as Zuko let out a frustrated noise and sent a blast at Zhao, but it landed next to his head instead of on his head. Zhao was disappointed.

"That's it? Your father raised a coward." He said, obviously distraught.

"Next time you get in my way, I promise I won't hold back." He said, turning and walking away. Hize smiled, pushing herself away from Iroh and walking towards Zuko. Behind him, she noticed Zhao stand up. She gained a curious expression on her face as he turned around and sent a flame kick at Zuko. Hize propelled herself forward, immediately appearing behind Zuko. She brought her arms up in an 'x' to block off the fire, slicing down when the flames hit her. Iroh was beside her, hand on Zhao's foot to stop any more of a blast. He then pushed Zhao back, causing the man to fall to the ground. Zuko was infuriated; he lunged towards the Commander, pushing the now singed Hize out of the way gently. Iroh grasped his nephews' shoulders.

"No, Prince Zuko!" Iroh said. "Do not taint your victory. So this is how the great Commander Zhao acts in defeat." Iroh was silent for a moment and Hize glared at the fallen Commander. "Disgraceful. Even in exile, my nephew is more honorable than you." Zuko looked over at Iroh, surprised. Hize knew that he was touched on the inside too.

"Thanks again for the tea, it was delicious." He said before turning and heading out of the area. Zuko glared at Zhao for a moment longer before gently grabbing Hize's singed sleeve and pulling her along with them. Once outside of the dueling area, he spoke.

"Did you really mean that, Uncle?" He asked softly, glancing down at the shorter, older man. Iroh smiled.

"Of course. I told you ginseng tea is my favorite." Iroh said, grinning. Zuko gripped Hize's sleeve harder, knowing that even though his Uncle was joking, he really meant it.

* * *

Once they were back on their scouter ship, Zuko made the order to head out now that it was repaired. Hize had already changed out of her singed robes into a new, fresh one. She hissed to herself as the material of the sleeves slid against her forearms, hoping that pain wouldn't last too long. She then made her way to the steering room, as she had promised Iroh a game of Pai Sho and tea. When she walked in, she saw Zuko sitting down at the Pai Sho table, a cup of tea in front of him; Iroh was next to him and there was an empty spot across from Zuko that had a steaming cup of ginger root tea.

"Mm. Ginger root tea, my favorite." Hize announced as she gently lowered herself into a comfortable sitting position. Iroh chuckled as he began to set up the board. He, as always, made the first move. Zuko stared at the board for a while, not really enthused about playing. He then made a random move that caused Hize to roll her eyes. She quickly reached out, her hand sliding out of her sleeve to make her move and capture Zuko's piece. She looked up at him to see his reaction to losing a piece, but noticed his eyes somewhere else. She glanced over at Iroh and saw his eyes elsewhere as well. She followed both of their gazes and realized they were staring at her hands. Her normally pale skin had a rather noticeable red mark on it; a burn from Zhao. She swiftly pulled her hand back into her sleeve and stood.

"I'm afraid I'm feeling ill. I think I should call it a night." She said, heading out the door. She was almost to her room when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw Zuko standing there, a medical kit in his hands. He opened her bedroom door for her and she walked in, Zuko behind her. She sat on her bed and he gently reached out to grab her hand. He pulled out some ointment and bandages and glared at her.

"That was stupid of you." He said, obviously displeased. Hize rolled her eyes, hissing as he rubbed the ointment on the burn.

"Fine. Next time I see a deadly blast of fire coming at you, I'll just let it kill you. You know, not like I need you around or anything." She said, scowling. She cried out as his pressed down on her wound purposely. She shut her mouth as she waited for him to finish.

"Uncle could have taken care of it." He said calmly. Hize sighed.

"He didn't need to take care of it. He always takes care of it. I should be able to actually do my job." She chided to herself. Zuko looked up at her in irritation, done wrapping her hand.

"And what exactly is your job, Hize?" He asked, wanting her answer. She looked away.

"To protect you." She said, he stood up and headed towards the door.

"No. Your job is to serve and obey me. You do that for the most part. I don't need your protection." He said, closing her door. She stared at the metal frame for a while before glancing down at her now numb hand.

"But I want to protect you." She whispered, closing her eyes as she let out a sad sigh.


	4. The Warriors of Kyoshi

Author's Note is at the bottom. BTW: I now have tow pictures of Hize ready for viewing. The links are below.

* * *

Prince Zuko's ship was silent. The only sound that could be heard was the two pairs of footsteps that seemed to walk in sync. General Iroh turned his gaze from in front of him, to peering at the girl next to him from the corner of his eye.

"May I ask, Hize, as to why you are joining me to deliver this message to Prince Zuko?" He asked, his arms crossed behind him and his usual cheery expression on his face. A smile graced Hize's pink lips, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"I will not miss an opportunity like this one, General Iroh. This will be quite an entertaining experience." She admitted, her arms crossed in front of her as she followed next to Iroh in quick, short strides. He chuckled merrily.

"If I didn't know any better, Hize, I would say you take pleasure in seeing my nephew in anger." He said, a knowing smirk crossing his face as they neared the prince's bedroom. "But that is not the case, is it?" He questioned, his hand on the knob. Hize smiled softly; it was quite the opposite actually. The door creaked as Iroh pushed it open, stepping into Zuko's room slightly. Hize was behind the shorter man, on her toes to see Zuko's reaction at the news.

Zuko sat in front of the dull candlelight, in a relaxed position as he meditated. He looked calm, calm enough to bring a smile to Hize's face. The light in the room was increasing and decreasing as he meditated, the flames moving with his thoughts. It was beautiful, in Hize's opinion. Zuko's eyes opened slightly at the intruding noise.

"The only reason you should be interrupting me is if you have news about the Avatar." He said, displeased about having his meditation interrupted. Iroh opened the door fully, allowing Hize to slip inside the room and lean against the wall.

"Well, there is news Prince Zuko. But you might not like it. Don't get too upset." He said, his hands rising in defense already. Hize's thin, black eyebrow twitched upwards slightly.

"Uncle, you taught me that keeping a level head is a sign of a great leader. Now whatever you have to say, I'm sure I can take it." Zuko was surprisingly calm about this; but Hize caught the concerned expression on his face as she stood within the sight of his features.

"Okay, then." Iroh said, almost hesitant to finish his sentence. "We have no idea where he is." Suddenly, the flames from the candlelight exploded into the room as Zuko's anger increased ten-fold. Hize brought her arm up to block the flames from reaching her face, using her free hand to manipulate the flames to move around her body.

"What?" Zuko screamed, standing up quickly as he clenched his fists angrily. He stood in front of Iroh, looking as if he was close to hitting the older man. Iroh took his fan and poke Zuko with it, chiding.

"You should really open a window in here." He opened his fan and began to fan himself casually. Hize let out the softest of giggles. Zuko growled and snatched the map from Iroh.

"Give me the map!" He demanded, opening it up.

"There have been multiple sightings of the Avatar. But he is impossible to track down." Iroh said, informing his nephew of the situation.

"How am I going to find him, Uncle?" Zuko sounded deflated as he spoke, scanning the map. "He is clearly a master of evasive maneuvers." Iroh was silent in response, only turned and exited the room. Zuko crumpled the map up with a growl and tossed it to the ground. He kept his back to the girl in the room with him. He tensed.

"I bet you're pleased about this." His voice was sour, deeply sour. Hize reared her head back, openly hurt about the comment. She took a step forward.

"Zuko…" Her voice was soft as she kept the usual formalities out, hinting at their complex situation. "I admit… I have no desire to return to the Fire Nation. You are well aware of that." She approached him and gently placed her hand on his tense arm. "But I swear to you, I will do everything in my power to help you capture the Avatar. If not for me, but for you." She said, her eyes on the ground. He turned his head towards her, but said nothing as his eyes remained on the shorter girl. He sighed, content with her answer.

"I'm going to have the crew stop at the nearest port… I'll get you more ginger root tea…" He said, subtly thanking the girl for her devotion. She gave him a half smile before turning away from him and heading to his bedroom door.

"I would like that, Prince Zuko." She said, exiting his room.

* * *

A happy sigh escaped Hize's lips as she handed yet another bag to her escort. Ziva groaned as he took the vile bag from her. They were docked at an Earth Nation harbor and Hize was currently walking around spending lots of money. Ziva, unfortunately, was her escort and had to carry all of her baggage.

"Hize, I think you've bought enough." Ziva complained, the only guard on the Fire Nation ship that would actually speak to her without formalities. Hize grinned.

"Ziva, Ziva, Ziva. You forget, we're not spending my money. We're spending Prince Zuko's." She said, smiling as she inspected yet another book she was interested in purchasing.

"I know that. I just…" Ziva sighed. "I can't wrap my head around why you would buy books and scrolls instead of clothing like most other girls." Hize glanced at him out of the corner of her eye before her jaw slowly dropped and she stared lovingly over his shoulder.

Ziva blinked, wondering what was making her so enthralled. He figured there was an attractive man behind him and he slowly turned around, his eyes immediately finding what she was looking at. It was a beautiful pair of pure onyx Sais; sheaths included. They were crafted beautifully, and had a small curve to the blade that was barely noticeable. Hize glanced over at the booths' tender before walking over with a smile. Ziva tuned her out as his friend began to flirt and haggle with the tender, leaving the booth with the blades in her hands.

"Well, Ziva. I do believe I've spent enough of the Princes' money. Enough to forgive him for being so rude to me." She smiled, perfectly content with her new blades.

The trek back to the ship was silent as the sun began to quickly set. As they approached the lowered bow, guards around the ship bowed to her respectfully as she entered the ship, slowly filing in behind her. When she and Ziva were safe on the ship; the bow rose. She glanced back at Ziva.

"Would you mind taking those bags to my study? I'll put them away later." She smiled at her friend, whom merely nodded and struggled to walk with his sight impaired by the baggage. Hize turned, her gown swishing as she quickly approached the dining area. She had tucked the blades into the straps that rested on her forearms, so she could swiftly reach over with the opposite hand and use them as needed. Most didn't know this about her; but she always had concealed weapons on her.

She opened the door to the dining area to see Iroh and Zuko already there, waiting for her to arrive. She smiled as she walked in and sat down across from Iroh, next to Zuko. Iroh grinned at her.

"Hize! Did you find anything worthwhile out in the bazaar?" He asked, leaning forward slightly as if they were going to start gossiping. Zuko glanced over at her, also curious.

"Actually, I did." She said, pulling up her sleeve to show off her new blades. She turned her head towards Zuko, making eye contact. She smiled, showing that she forgave him. He turned forward as the door from the kitchen opened. Hize immediately pulled her sleeve down and placed her hands in her lap politely, bowing her head to the server. As he placed down the plate of fish, he told Prince Zuko some pleasant news.

"The Avatar's on Kyoshi Island?" Zuko questioned, rising up to be on his feet. Hize smiled, happy that Zuko would be out of his brooding attitude. His head turned to Iroh.

"Uncle, ready the rhinos. He's not getting away from me this time!" Zuko said as he started to exit the dining room. Hize blinked, moving her blank gaze from her Prince to the food that was placed on the table. It seemed as though Iroh had the same thoughts as her as he spoke.

"Are you going to finish that?" He asked, pointing at the fish. Zuko turned around and stormed back, grabbing the fish from the table protectively.

"I was going to save it for later!" He yelled, walking out of the room. Both Iroh and Hize took to a pouting pose, both unhappy about the loss of food. Hize was the first to get over it; quickly picking up the bowl of rice in front of her and eating what she did have. Iroh followed her example, still pouting.

"The least he could've done was leave a few pieces for us." He said through pouting lips. Hize giggled, she loved Iroh. Even though Iroh was older than her, he was probably one of her most valued friends. She was silent during his rambling and continued to eat peacefully.

* * *

"Hize, I know you've refused to do this…" Hize slamming the door to her wardrobe, a bundle in her hands, cut off Zuko.

"Prince Zuko, I told you that I would do anything to help you capture the Avatar. But I lied." She held up a mask; a mask that brought memories rushing back to Zuko. It was a white, porcelain mask modeled to look exactly like a fierce dragon; it was large enough to cover her entire face. "I won't help you; but the White Dragon will." She said, tossing the mask down onto the bundle of clothing that rested on her bed. Zuko watched her as she removed her gown; revealing the full-body black skin-suit she wore underneath it. She removed the Sais from her forearms, taking the straps off as well. Her gaze drifted to Zuko, then she smiled.

"Don't worry, Zuko. You're not forcing me into this. I choose this." That seemed to give him enough reassurance as he turned to her bedroom door to leave.

"Meet me down at the bow when you're done dressing." He said before walking out. Hize sighed, pulling on a red cheongsam; it had gold detailing, no sleeves and a slit on both sides to where the flap hung down to her knees. After she adjusted her dress, she pulled on the full-arm bracers she wore. She needed them for the weapon she used. Her gaze landed on the cloak that rested on the bed; the last fabric to go on her. She closed her eyes as she reached for it; swinging it over her shoulders and fastening it at the right shoulder; this successfully hid her gender. She turned to the mirror that decorated her vanity and quickly pulled her hair into a very tight, high bun. She grabbed the mask and slid it over her face, hiding her feminine features. The last piece to complete the ensemble was the pair of bladed onyx tonfa she was highly skilled in. She gripped them in her hands, having the blade rest on her elbow as she exited her room; no longer Hize, but now the White Dragon.

The Dragon entered the landing deck, all eyes on her. This was the first time anyone on the ship besides Zuko and Iroh have seen the White Dragon in person; but they knew about the man. He was said to be a skilled weapons master that worked for the Royal Procession as a unique bodyguard to the Royal Family. No one has seen the White Dragon unmasked, so no one knows of his identity. But now; the entire crew knew that someone onboard Zuko's ship was the White Dragon.

"White Dragon, it's been a while." Zuko said with familiarity. Dragon bowed his head, showing his respect to the Prince. The first rule of the Royal Procession was not to speak; something the White Dragon followed well. He walked over to the prince and stood behind his rhino, choosing to walk behind him and his three guards, ready to attack if need be.

The ship shook as the bow began to lower. Once it hit the ground, the group of antagonists descended the ramp, ready to attack Kyoshi Island to find the Avatar.

"I want the Avatar alive." Zuko commanded, eyes forward. Then they began their silent trek to Kyoshi Village.

It took mere minutes to reach Kyoshi Village. The four rhinos came to a stop as they waited for someone to approach them. Zuko gave the White Dragon a nod and he separated from the group, scouting the village for the Avatar.

"Come out, Avatar! You can't hide from me forever." Zuko called to the village. There were small shrieks of fright, as the White Dragon would look into houses to see if the Avatar was hiding in them.

"Find him." Zuko ordered, causing the other three on the rhinos to separate from him. The White Dragon followed behind the group for a few short seconds, until he sensed they were easily being stalked. He stopped and allowed the group to proceed before suddenly, a female warrior jumped out at him. More warriors ambushed the group in front of the White Dragon. With a smirk under her mask, Hize resumed her persona of the White Dragon with adrenaline rushing through her.

The White Dragon swayed easily to the left to avoid an oncoming slice from the girls' rather metallic fan. Another slice was brought to his side, where he brought up his tonfa to block the attack. Thus began a battle of block after block. The White Dragon had circled around his opponent multiple times already and still had more stamina left. Suddenly, he thrust forward and slammed his arm into the girls' chest, causing her to fall back to the ground. He turned around to go back to the front of the village where Zuko was. Another warrior girl raced past her and towards Zuko, whom was shooting flames off at the girl. She suddenly jumped up, but Zuko swiftly led the rhino in a turn, his tail slamming the girl into the ground. He sent a blast of fire at the girl, but another warrior stepped in the way, deflecting it. As the White Dragon was coming within attacking distance, Zuko was knocked off of his rhino by another warrior; the other two coming to surround him. Zuko pivoted and swung his body around, sending a blast of fire at the warriors; causing what seemed like the leader to slam into a wooden pole.

The White Dragon slammed her bladed arm sideways into the other female warriors stomach, knocking her back into the building they were in front of. Zuko began to attack the male warrior with his Firebending. The boy fell to the ground and Zuko easily jumped over them into the middle of the town street.

"Nice try, Avatar. But these little girls can't save you." He called to the village. The White Dragon snapped his head to Zuko, offended. But before Hize could say anything out of character, the Avatar interrupted them.

"Hey! Over here!" Zuko turned around to see the Avatar standing at the front of the village. Zuko then muttered something and began a battle with the Avatar. But the White Dragon had more important things to worry about, like the three warriors that began to surround him. He took in a breath before thrusting his arms out, mustering as much inner heat as he could to send a blast of flames out. The girls, who avoided it by jumping or ducking, easily dodged it. He swiftly brought his body to the left to avoid a fan that narrowly missed his shoulder.

Dragon brought his arm out to stop a fan from slicing him, the clang being heard all around. Suddenly, a blow landed to his shoulder and he stumbled. He let out a fierce growl before thrusting his hand out at his attacker, knocking the girl to the ground with a blow of fire. He dodged to the left as another blow missed him, jumping with a girl decided to swing her legs under him. Her slammed his head into hers, knocking her back. He was dazed for a minute at the impact, but shook it off as a blow to the stomach knocked him to the ground. The remaining warrior circled him cautiously, but was too late to move when the White Dragon spun his body around in a circle and landed upright. He tilted his blade away from the girl and slammed his elbow into the side of her head, knocking her out.

"Back to the ship, don't lose sight of him!" Prince Zuko yelled, causing all the guards to retreat. The Kyoshi Warriors stood defensively as the White Dragon didn't budge. He walked up to the wooden statue of Avatar Kyoshi and held his hand out, forcing the flames to come into his hand. Once the statue was no longer aflame, he thrust his hand downward, causing the flames to extinguish as they landed in the dirt. He turned towards the Warriors and pressed his right arm against his stomach, mock bowing to them before doing a quick back flip to avoid a fan that was thrown his way. He then quickly followed after Zuko.

Once he caught up with Zuko, it then began to rain fiercely. He looked up and saw the Unagi, a creature from the sea. It was spraying water over the town to extinguish the flames caused by the Fire Nation. Under the mask, Hize smiled brightly.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews guys. I hope you guys stick around to find out more. I need to explain the White Dragon. I know some of you might be confused about how I refer to Hize's White Dragon persona in a male tense; but that's only because the White Dragon is thought to me male; as the cloak she wears covers her chests. If you have any questions; leave it in the review and I'll try and answer them in the next chapter! I hope you like it!

Hize's gown: .com/albums/ae191/Fwalandra/Fanfiction%20Characters/Hize/Art%20of%?t=1277243800

Hize as the White Dragon: .com/albums/ae191/Fwalandra/Fanfiction%20Characters/Hize/Art%20of%?t=1277239542


	5. The White Dragon

Author's Note: Hello everyone! ;D I hope you're enjoying this series. This will be the first chapter I write that has no basis from an episode, so it might not be very structured. It's also all about the White Dragon. I hope you enjoy it; and I hope it reveals a bit more about Hize and Zuko's relationship. ;D Also; I was informed that links in stories don't work; so the link to Hize's album is now on my profile page if you would like to see what the pretty girl looks like. ;D (As well as the White Dragon. 3 )

* * *

Once everyone returned to the ship from Kyoshi Village, all the guards dispersed. Prince Zuko and the White Dragon were the only ones left in the room, staring at each other. It'd be years since Zuko had seen the Dragon. And the Dragon was something he owed his life to.

The entire Royal Family was gathered in the meeting room of the palace; children included. The young Prince Zuko, merely the age of nine, sat at the meeting table, his head lowered. His mother had been missing for nearly a week now; and no one seemed to give him any answers about her suddenly disappearance. He didn't even know if she was still alive. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps.

_The doors to the room opened swiftly as two older men walked in; General Zhen of the Fire Nation Army and General Ying of the Royal Procession stood there, both bowed to the newly appointed Fire Lord. Fire Lord Ozai raised his hand in recognition before gesturing for them to speak. Zhen spoke first._

"_Fire Lord Ozai, due to recent events outside of our country… We feel as though an infiltration of your court is impending. General Ying and I are well aware that you are fully capable of handling anything within your path, sir. But as a close friend, I am still concerned." Zhen's voice was level and never wavered from the deep vibrations that he bellowed out._

"_We feel it within your best interest to establish a special force branching from the Royal Procession." Ying spoke, his voice softer than Zhen's, but still commanding the same respect and dignity. The Fire Lord only continued to stare at his two, rather close friends, waiting for them to continue. Zhen complied with his silent order._

"_The Royal Procession, as you're well-aware of, is complied of skilled Fire Benders; but it is lacking the fierce power of physical means. I wish to test out a branch specializing in physical attack instead of Fire Bending." General Zhen proposed his idea to the Fire Lord. Ozai leaned forward a bit, resting his hand on his head._

"_Do you already have soldiers for this branch, General Zhen?" He questioned, curious as to how much thought Zhen had actually put into this branch. Zhen smirked as his eyes narrowed slightly, his face reflecting the devious thoughts within his head._

"_Oh, Lord Ozai, you know me better than that. In fact, I have a soldier here now that I've been training since their birth. I must admit, I'm quite proud of this soldier. The best one I have." Zhen gestured to the door, implying that the soldier was just on the other side._

"_Very well, bring him in, Zhen." Ozai said, leaning back. Zhen nodded and cleared his throat. Zuko blinked when he saw someone familiar walk in, a smaller figure beside her. It was Commander Zizan of the YuYan Archers, the only female on the entire squadron. Zuko heard rumors that she had retired recently, and he knew for a fact she was married to General Zhen. The two spouses shared a small glance with one another before Zizan gripped the shoulder of the child next to her, pulling him forward forcefully._

_It was a boy, about Zuko's age by the height. He wore a white, dragon mask over his face to hide his identity and a cheongsam that reached to his knees. Rather odd wardrobe for a warrior._

"_Fire Lord Ozai, please meet the White Dragon." Ozai looked skeptical._

"_A child, Zhen? You dare make a mockery of me?" He asked, almost enraged at his friends behavior. Zhen held up his hands in defense._

"_My Lord, you have not seen his abilities yet. Let him prove himself to you." He suggested, gesturing to the small child beside him. Ozai sat back down, eyeing the masked figure._

"_Very well—" Before he could finish, an ambush happened within the room. Two Fire Nation soldiers began to run at the children, not the Fire Lord. They wanted to take out the heirs before the Fire Lord himself. The White Dragon snapped into action, kicking off from the ground and slamming the blade of his tonfa into a guard's throat. He ducked as the remaining guard attempted to throw a punch at him. He rolled to the left before slicing at the guards exposed ankles, knocking him to the ground. _

_The White Dragon stood, staring at the now crawling man. He followed him slowly, eyes set on bloodshed. He was silent as he rolled the man over, pulling off his helmet. Earth Nation rebels, but how did they get into the castle? He thought about it no longer as the man began to attempt an Earth Bending attack. The White Dragon slammed his foot into the rebels' head, knocking him out. He already killed one intruder; the Fire Nation would need one to still be alive to interrogate._

_When the White Dragon turned around, the first thing he saw was a scared Prince Zuko. He was the target of the assassination attempt. His gaze traveled to Fire Lord Ozai before the White Dragon bowed to him respectfully and moved to stand by General Zhen once again. General Zhen tsked at the mess that lay in the room, blood spilt from the fresh kill._

_Fire Lord Ozai stood. "General Zhen, this child is a prodigy with weaponry, is he not?" General Zhen nodded in confirmation. "Very well, then. I would like for him to be with my children at all times, as a bodyguard." General Zhen smiled delightfully._

"_That is exactly what I had hoped you'd say, My Lord." He bowed deeply to the man before being excused. The White Dragon stayed in the room, his golden-eyed gaze still locked on Prince Zuko. Everyone began to file out of the room, leaving the White Dragon and the young Prince alone._

"_You… saved my life." Zuko said, his voice small. The White Dragon said nothing as he turned and exited the room._

_

* * *

_

Zuko shivered at the memory. That was his first experience with death, and it was something he would never forget. It was when he was twelve that he discovered that the White Dragon was a girl, but not just any girl. It was Hize, General Zhen's only daughter.

_For almost three years now, Zuko and Azula had to deal with the White Dragon following them around while outside of the castle. And sometimes even inside. Azula took to taunting their protector, hoping to get a rise out of him. Zuko just tried his hardest to ignore him. Though, he had been undeniably curious about the masked boys' identity; the White Dragon didn't even speak, so he couldn't get help through vocal recognition._

_It was late, almost midnight. Everyone in the castle, besides the patrolling guards, was in bed. Or supposed to be, in Prince Zuko's case. Zuko was quietly creeping around the castle, making his way to the outer garden that rested within their estate. For years now, he often snuck out to the garden. It was the place that contained the strongest memory of his mother._

_Glancing around, Zuko made sure no one was looking as he darted across the hall and out into the fresh night air. He took in a deep breath before slowly approaching the fountain. He sat down on the edge and slowly swirled his finger in the rather chilly water. A warm feeling overcame him as he thought about his mother, Princess Ursa._

_He still had no idea what happened to her. Just that she vanished. He had hopes that she was still alive somewhere, waiting for him to find her… but he also accepted the fact that it was unlikely. Now he was stuck with a father that hated him and a sister that got sick enjoyment out of humiliating him. At least he still had Uncle; he was the only family member that treated him with kindness. Though a prince, Zuko still had few friends. Ty Lee and Mai often visited, but Azula usually forced them to stay with her and ignore her brother._

_A shuffling noise brought him out of his trance and Prince Zuko lifted his head towards the doors; seeing the White Dragon approaching him. The Dragon said nothing as he took a seat next to Zuko, eyes downcast to the water. Zuko was tense around the Dragon, he always was. It left him on edge knowing that this boy had the capability to kill him at a moments notice. But his stiffness slowly went away as he began to sense that the Dragon was more relaxed than normal. Both of their gazes went to the water and they sat there quietly._

_Half an hour went by with silence between the two; a slow, silent bond forming as they shared the special area with one another. Zuko turned his gaze to the Dragon, who looked over at him at the sudden movement. He bit his lip and looked away before lifting his hand. It quivered slightly and he hesitantly pulled it back, before deciding to proceed with his plan. He reached over and grasped the bottom of the Dragon's mask. The White Dragon's hand immediately shot out and grabbed his wrist gently, pulling it away. Zuko looked away, almost hurt by the fact that his protector of years still wouldn't reveal himself, but all that went away as he noticed movement out of the corner of his eyes._

_The Dragon had reached up himself to grasp the edge of the mask, pulling it up gently. Zuko's mouth was open, obvious shock on his face. He pulled back slightly, too shocked to even say anything. In front of him was someone that he had seen around, someone he least expected to be the White Dragon, let alone a warrior. The Dragon's golden gaze lowered and a soft voice punctuated the silence._

_"Hello, Prince Zuko." Hize's voice was soft. It shook halfway through her sentence, almost as if she was afraid. Zuko slumped his shouldered, slowly getting over his initial shock._

_"Hize?" Zuko asked softly. "You're the White Dragon?" She nodded softly, eyes still downcast. "Does your father know?" Her eyes snapped up, an almost bitter look on her face._

_"Who do you think taught me all that?" She snapped out, scowling at the prince. "Ever since I could walk my parents have been training me non-stop. They didn't want their only child to be a pathetic mess. They wanted a boy, so they forced me into a mans life." She spat out, clenching her fists. Zuko was silent for a moment before he reached over and placed his hand on hers. She looked over at him tensely, her anger melting away quickly._

_"I apologize, Prince Zuko—" She was cut off._

_"It's fine. I understand. You have every right to be upset." He said softly, bringing his hand back to him. There was another long period of silence, but it was comfortable. After another half hour, Zuko glanced at her._

_"Hize?" He asked softly, eyes now downcast. She turned her gaze to him, a black eyebrow raised. He continued, "Will you teach me how to fight?" He requested softly. She smiled softly, knowing how much it meant to him to try and have some value to his father. She nodded when he looked up at her, and thus began the beginning of an already strange friendship between the two._

_

* * *

_

"Zuko?" The question snapped him back to Earth, his head turning swiftly to the White Dragon that was beside him, hand on his shoulder. He shrugged it off gently.

"I'm fine. But you better get changed." He said as he moved around his long-time friend to go do the same.

* * *

A/N: Please remember to review. ;D I enjoy hearing from you guys. If you have a question, any at all, ask away and I will answer them as best as I can! 3


	6. Imprisoned

A/N: So, I was watching the Sozin Comet episodes yesterday. And I was like, "Hize would do this, or that, blah blah blah." So I decided, despite the lack of feedback, that I would go ahead and write up another chapter. I really want to get to Sozin's Comet now. D: Anyway; I hope you guys find this chapter as entertaining as I did.

* * *

"Ah!" The sharp wail pierced the ship's hall suddenly. Hize brought her lips up into a scowl as she tried to mentally will her victim to be quiet. Her pleas were unheard as another cry of pain was let lose. With a sigh of frustration, Hize threw the medicine kit to the ground and crossed her arms.

"I'm done with you! You're acting like such a baby!" She breathed out, glaring at the Fire Nation soldier in front of her. Several others were in the hall by now, watching the scene as it played out.

"You would be in pain too if I was pouring acid into your wounds!" Ziva yelled back at Hize, rubbing his arm where a fresh gash was bleeding softly. The blood smeared and he hissed once again as the medicine she was using entered the wound. Hize let out an unlady-like snort at the man in front of her.

"Would not." She argued. "I say just let it get infected so we can just chop it off! Since medicine is too much for a Fire Nation soldier to handle!" She insulted, turning to walk away. Ziva clenched his fists.

"Hey! Don't walk away from me! My arm's still bleeding!" Hize continued walking, ignoring Ziva. "Hize! HIZE!" He screamed, pouting softly. Hize was one of the few on the ship with medical experienced, and the only one he trusted. The girl let out another frustrated sigh as she quickly spun on her heel and back over to him. She swooped down to pick up the medicine kit and opened it, glaring at Ziva.

"You better be quiet during this." She warned, pointing her finger at her older friend as she swiftly pulled out the cloth and vial of medicine she was previously using. Ziva's pink lips were formed into a pout as he held out his arm childishly to his younger friend. Several of the onlookers started to move away, but former General Iroh just found it too amusing to pass up. He approached the two, laughing loudly.

Just as Hize was applying the medicine to Ziva's cut, Iroh gave the soldier a hefty pat on the back. Ziva's eyes bulged at the pain he suddenly felt, but he bit down on his lip hard to stop a cry of pain from being released. Hize, on the other hand, was smirking at Iroh's actions, utterly pleased with what had taken place.

"Ziva, lad…" Iroh started in his deep voice. "For being a Fire Nation soldier, you have quite a low level of pain-tolerance." Ziva glared at the shorter, older man with his gold orbs, saying nothing. Hize giggled as she began to wrap the cut around Ziva's bicep, tying it into a knot gently. She pulled back and gave him a mocking pat on the wound with a grin, causing her victim to wince loudly.

"There you go, Ziva. Good as new." She said in an almost singsong voice. Ziva's eyes were narrowed at her. He pointed his finger at her accusingly.

"It wouldn't have to be new if you wouldn't have stabbed me!" He said, his lip curled upwards in a scowl. Hize brought a hand to her chest in false surprise.

"I did no such thing! You said yourself it was… only a scratch." She teased him. He threw his good arm up in the air in exasperation before walking down the hall without another word, wanting to get away from the main source of all his stress and frustration. Hize only watched him walk away innocently before turning to Iroh.

"Did I say something wrong?" She asked, tilting her head slightly. Iroh chuckled, folding his hands into his sleeves. Hize followed his actions as they began to walk down the hall and towards the deck.

"I must admit, Hize. It is refreshing to have someone of your humor on this ship. It makes the days much easier to bare." Iroh confessed, a smile on his face. Hize returned the smile, genuinely happy.

"Thank you, Iroh. That means a lot to me. I must confess as well, Iroh. I'm quite pleased that you're here. It's nice to have a Pai Sho partner who enjoys tea as much as I do." She sent him a grin, causing them both to laugh out as they stepped out onto the deck. It was barren, minus a lone Prince standing at the bow. The two companions made their way to the outdoors Pai Sho board that was set to the side of the deck. Iroh sat down and began to set up the board, calling to his nephew.

"Prince Zuko! Care to join us in a game of Pai Sho?" He asked, causing Zuko to turn around. He glanced over at the two before stalking over to them. He stood next to the board and gazed down at it before sighing and lowering himself beside it. Hize followed his actions, smiling slightly. Iroh gestured for her to go.

"Ladies first." He said politely. Hize grinned at him, giving her thanks. Zuko let out a soft snort at his comment, causing the girl to glare at him in response before jabbing him in the side roughly with her finger. Zuko returned her glare fiercely, scowling as well. She let out a humph before making her move.

The game went on for a while, mainly consisting of Zuko and Hize childishly bickering back and fourth due to something that Iroh instigated. The rather quick game ended as it usually did; with Iroh winning. They were going to begin another game until they were interrupted by a crewmember informing them that dinner would be served soon. Iroh was the first to stand at the mention of food, as always. Prince Zuko swiftly stood and dusted himself off. He glanced down at Hize before looking away quickly, casually holding out his hand to her. Hize arched one of her thin brows at the gesture, wondering if it was just his way of being polite to her because the White Dragon was back. She didn't dwell on it much as she accepted his hand and he helped her up easily. She dusted herself off as well, but did so with less vigor. She folded her arms inside her long sleeves, a calm feeling overwhelming her as she felt the safety of the hilt of her Sais on her fingertips.

Put in a state of tranquility, Hize followed behind the Prince and Iroh as they headed indoors. They walked down the metal hall in silence, as there wasn't much use for conversation. Once they reached the dining area, Zuko surprised her once again by holding the door open for her. She slid inside and took the seat she always took. As everyone was settled down, the food was served. The meal was silent, very silent. After an hour; it was only Zuko and Hize in the room and Hize had taken to staring at the banished Prince, her head resting gently on her hand.

He turned to glare at her, annoyed with her continuous gaze. "What?" He snapped, lips curling upwards in a snarl. Hize let out a short, displeased laugh.

"You think that's annoying? What's annoying is when you know a person is being nice to you for the wrong reasons." She said, leaning back to cross her arms. Zuko raised an eyebrow at her curiously; she gave him a nasty look.

"Oh please, Zuko! Don't even try to act innocent. You're being nice to the Dragon, not to me." She said, glaring. "Stop it. It's pissing me off. If you don't have enough decency to be nice to Hize, who's been loyal to you for almost seven years, then don't bother being kind to the Dragon just because he decided to help you out after a few years. Despite the differences, Zuko, the Dragon and I are one in the same." She said, eyes downcast. Zuko clenched his fist at the way he was speaking to her; he stood up, flames shooting from his hands. He wanted to hit her, so badly. He started to, his hand raised up, until her golden eyes connected with his own.

"What happened to that sweet boy that used to be my best friend?" She whispered, eyebrows furrowed as her eyes reflected such a deep level of sadness. Zuko dropped his hand, unable to hurt her. He turned away from her, tense.

"He died two years ago, the day he was banished from his own country by his own father." And with that, he left her alone with the only company of her tears.

* * *

Hize awoke in the middle of the night to banging on her door. She groaned to herself, trying to ignore it as she rolled over and pulled the blankets over her head. The banging did stop for a second, until the door was forced open. Hize glared at the blanket that covered her head, annoyed that someone just waltzed into her room. The blankets were ripped off of her body and she groaned loudly. She curled into a ball for warmth and pulled the pillow over her head.

A growl was heard as the pillow was ripped away from her. Hize sat up and glared at the intruder, the glare melting away in surprise. Her eyebrow arched.

"Yes?" She asked, her voice dry. Prince Zuko crossed his arms over his chest in aggravation.

"I was knocking on your door." He stated bluntly.

"I heard." She replied with the same vigor, crossing her arms to mock him.

"And why didn't you answer?" He questioned the shorter girl.

"I was trying to sleep."

"What if it was important?"

"Then I guess you would've come barging into my room like you just did."

"I guess so."

"What if I would've been naked?" She asked, wiggling her eyebrows at him. He rolled his eyes.

"Wouldn't be the first time." Her cheeks flushed.

"Get out."

"No."

"Zuko… what do you want?" She groaned out, flopping back onto her bed.

"The Dragon. Get dressed." He said, turning away from her.

"Why?" She asked, standing up to stretch.

"A nearby Earth Bender prison reported a revolt, all of them got away. With the help of the Avatar." He said, glancing at her from over his shoulder. She nodded.

"The Dragon will be down in a few minutes." She said, not needing anymore else. Just as he was about to leave, she stopped him.

"And Zuko?" He turned back to her. "Thanks for being an asshole again." She said, giving him a sarcastic smile. He glared at her and slammed her door shut, causing her to giggle. She turned to her wardrobe and slipped into her clothing. With a pull of her Dragon mask, she slipped out of her room unnoticed and made her way down the hall.

The White Dragon entered the bow of the ship, waiting to exit. Once the bow began to lower, he made sure he had a tight grip on his tonfa, ready for anything. He stepped off the ship directly behind Prince Zuko and took a glance around the rig. It was covered in coal.

'_So that's how they did it. Smart.'_ He thought to himself, looking around more. He made his way to the edge of the rig where he heard splashing. He leaned over and saw several guards and the warden trying to stay afloat. He pulled back and grabbed a piece of coal, throwing it as Zuko. He turned as it tapped him on the shoulder, glaring. The Dragon gestured him over, pointing down. After Zuko looked, he ordered his men to help them up.

The sun was beginning to set and there were no signs of anything related to the Avatar, until Zuko came to a sudden halt. The Dragon began to approach him as he bent down and picked up an object from the ground. He gripped the object in his hands and looked out to the sea, eyes narrowed. Once close enough, the Dragon realized it was a necklace that was in his hands. Under the mask, Hize's eyebrow arched.

"Pretty." She said softly, reaching out to it. Zuko pulled it away.

"This is that Water Tribe girl's necklace. I should probably… return this to her." He smirked over at the Dragon, who smiled under the mask as he followed the Prince inside their ship.

* * *

A/N: I officially love Ziva. xD Just thought you should know.


	7. The Spirit World

A/N: This chapter took a lot out of me, it really did. I know some people think Hize's just a carefree, semi-hardass girl that can kick some ass physically. But she has her weaknesses. She's not a Mary-Sue; at least I hope not. I'm hoping this chapter will bring out her vulnerable side. And it would mean a lot to me if you would review on this chapter; I really want to know how to guys feel about Hize. I put a lot into her, you know?

* * *

A perfectly content sigh escaped Hize's lips as she sunk lower into the pool of water she rested in. While out walking, she and Iroh discovered a little pathway of small pools that connected to each other, going slightly downhill. The banished Fire Nation girl was currently shoulder-deep in the hot tub of water, one tub directly below Iroh. Her knees were pulled up to her chest and her eyes were closed, on the verge of falling asleep. All the tranquility in the area was shattered by the sound of the dreadful voice.

"Uncle! Hize! It's time to leave!" Zuko yelled, storming into their area of peace. "Where are you?" He called out, continuing towards them. "Uncle Iroh!" He stopped just beside the branch that held Hize and Iroh's clothing. Hize glared at him, sinking lower into the water to where it came up to her nose, just enough so she could breath. _Little jerk. Has to ruin everything, doesn't he?_ She thought bitterly.

"Over here." Iroh called casually, obviously relaxed in the sizzling liquid. He was leaning back against the edge of the pool, completely content. He wasn't at all affected by Zuko's obnoxious voice.

"Uncle?" Zuko asked, wondering what he was doing. His eyes traveled lower and connected with Hize's harsh golden-eyed glare. He said nothing as he approached the two. "We need to move on." Zuko said, sounding rather calm. "We're closing in on the Avatar's trail. And I don't want to lose him!" He sounded a little desperate. Hize moved into a regular sitting position, revealing her bare shoulders. She was expecting to leave now, her happiness destroyed.

"You look tired, Prince Zuko." Iroh outstretched his arms happily. "Why don't you join us in these hot springs and soak away your troubles?" He suggested, still content. Hize nodded her head at Zuko fiercely when he glanced down at her, hoping he would accept. But instead, his face morphed into one of anger, his nose scrunching and his eyebrows furrowing.

"My troubles cannot be soaked away. It's time to go!" He yelled, glaring at his Uncle venomously. Yet still, Iroh was unphased. He looked at his nephew happily.

"You should take your teachers advice and relax a little. The temperature's just right. I heated it myself." He said in a tempting manner, before blowing smoke out of his nostrils to heat it up more. Hize let out a pleasant sigh as the warms cascaded down into her own tub of water, leaning back into the edge happily.

"Enough!" Zuko said, swiping away the smoke to clear the area. "We need to leave now. Get out of the water." He demanded, displeased with the situation.

"Very well." Iroh stood up, revealing his nude glory. Hize, who had been looking upwards to see Iroh's reaction, let out a cry before dipping her head into the water, hoping the heat would burn the image out of her retinas. Zuko brought his hand up to his face as he turned away in disgust.

"On second thought, why don't you take another few minutes? But be back at the ship in half an hour, or I'm leaving with out you two!" He glanced down at Hize as she resurfaced, just her nose up. She peered at him and blinked at him. They stared at each other for a minute before a look of anger crossed her face. She stood up suddenly, arms crossed over her chest.

"What? You think I'm naked too?" She asked, outraged. She wore a towel over her waist and surprisingly, nothing over her chest, which was covered. Prince Zuko's face burned red before he stalked away from the nude girl. Hize glared after him before sinking back into the water with a sigh.

"Can you believe that, Iroh? The nerve!" She let out a noise of irritation before leaning back to relax for a few more minutes. She glanced back up at Iroh, only to see that he had fallen asleep. A goofy grin crossed her face as she realized that they were going to totally ditch Prince Zuko. She brought her hands to the surface of the water and started to splash it playfully. She slowly became more and more distracted that she didn't feel the temperature of the water slowly sink. She shivered a moment later, finally noticing the chill.

_Perfect timing._ She said, hoping to practice a bit of her Fire Bending. She was never too great of a Bender, not like her father. She always wanted to feel the chaotic control of the flames as they danced around her, but she's only been able to muster up the basics and a few purple sparks here and there. She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes. She felt the sun beating down on her back and used that as her focus. She needed to feel the sun, feel the heat. Think of the Ancient Dragons, as they would easily use their flames in battle. She was the White Dragon, she could do this.

She opened her golden eyes and blew out of her nose, a small amount of steam coming out. It wasn't much, but it was enough to warm up the water for a while. She let out a small smile, proud that she was able to do even that. Maybe she had some hope after all? She began to ponder on the idea of her becoming a Fire Bender as she leaned back and shifted into a more relaxed position, unable to control her eyelids as they slowly slid shut.

* * *

"Hize…." The girl didn't move, only remained within the warm water in dreamland. "Hize!" Iroh's hand came down on the girls' head gently. The physical touch brought her out of her slumber and her hand snapped up to grab his roughly. When she felt the familiar texture of his calloused hands, she loosened her grip and glanced up at him. His eyes were set forward into the forest that surrounded them, where rustling could be heard. Hize bit her lip, almost in fear. It wasn't like her to fear confrontational or dangerous situations; but she knew that she might not be capable of fighting while nude and without weaponry. She gripped Iroh's hand as she rose up on her knees, using her free hand to cover her exposed breasts. Suddenly, she jumped back as a small field mouse jumped up onto the edge of Iroh's spring. She glared at the little creature, letting go of Iroh's hand and jabbing her finger at it.

"You scared me, little thing." She said, it only sniffed her finger and she smiled, reaching to its head to rub her finger between its ears. Iroh leaned forward and took it into his hand. Hize leaned up and crossed her arms over the ledge of Iroh's spring and rested her hand on them as she watched the little mouse. Her lower back and upwards was exposed, but her chest was hidden as it was pressed against the rock. Her hair was up in a tight bun, to reveal her pale skin. It was pale as the moon all over; except her back. Her back held a much different tone. The middle of her back started as a nasty deep rouge color before fading outwards; a burn scar taking up the entirety of her back.

"Oh! You startled me, little one." Iroh smiled at the mouse as it played around on his hand. Hize giggled at the similarities between her and Iroh. She began to kick her legs gently, swirling the water around as she tilted her head to the side to watch the cute little mouse. Iroh leaned back into his original position, the mouse still on his hand.

"Seems we've dozed off and missed Zuko's deadline." He said, letting the mouse go back on the ledge. It ran over to Hize and climbed up on her arm, stopping in front of her face. She went cross-eyed as she watched it sniff her nose. She giggled, startling the mouse and causing it to pull back. It then turned towards Iroh and sat down, almost as if it was listening. Iroh folded his arms behind his head leisurely.

"But it was a very sweet nap, wasn't it, Hize?" He asked the young girl. She nodded in response, agreeing with Iroh. Though, she had to admit that she was concerned that Zuko might have actually left them behind. The mouse started to jump up and down, almost as if it was trying to say something, little squeaks coming from it. The earth started to shake and Hize turned towards the forest slightly, making sure to keep her torso hidden from any onlookers. Suddenly, earth rose around her and Iroh, sealing them in a tomb. Hize let out a surprised scream and Iroh cried out in surprise. Earth Nation soldiers.

"Fire Nation soldier." One of the Earth Nation soldiers mimicked her thoughts. She tried to turn her head, but only caught a glimpse of someone holding up Iroh's robes.

"He's no ordinary soldier." The leader spoke, walking towards Iroh. "This is the Fire Lord's brother. The Dragon of the West. The once great General Iroh, but now he's our prisoner." They grinned in victory, causing Iroh to glare at them maliciously.

They examined Hize next before looking at her robes next, glancing back over at her. "And this must be his concubine." That set Hize off.

"CONCUBINE? As if I would _ever_ lower myself to such foul work! Let me out of this tomb and I will show you just what I am! I will kill you when I get the chance, you foul Earth Nation scum!" She started to struggle within the bonds she had, thrashing her head around. "You have no idea who I am! Let me out of this prison, you cowards!" She screamed, the continuous thrashing on the rocks causing several small cuts to form and her blood to flow free from them.

"Hize! That is enough. Settle down." Iroh commanded. Hize looked up at him through her hair, which had fallen down. He stared into her eyes so fiercely that she was surprised to feel tears rise to the surface of her eyes. She turned away from him and bit her lip as a few slipped out. She was no whore, how dare they have the nerve to insinuate such a preposterous idea. _I will kill them._ Hize vowed, beyond the point of anger.

She remained silent as the bonds around her and Iroh where removed, leaving their wrists and ankles restrained. She didn't miss the look several of the Earth Benders were giving her as they slowly removed the towel around her waist, putting it up to her breasts and wrapping it around so it covered her private areas. Then they proceeded to tie her and Iroh up; their legs together and their arms crossed over their chest to prevent any fight or Bending. Night was falling as they lifted Hize up onto one of the armored animals they had with them, doing the same with Iroh. She and Iroh were on separate birds, but within sight of one another. She sent him a panicked look, but his gaze was level and steely. She immediately realized that Iroh would let absolutely nothing happen to her, despite the position they were in.

She was silent as they began to move. "Where are you taking us?" Iroh demanded. The leader of the soldiers responded quickly.

"We're taking you to face justice." He replied, voice stern. Iroh rolled his eyes towards Hize, causing her to let out a small smile.

"Right…" Iroh drawled out. "But where, specifically?" He asked, turned towards the leader. Hize tensed, she had a guess.

"A place you're quite familiar with, actually. You once laid siege to it for 600 days. It would not yield to you." Hize glanced down. She always wanted to go to Ba Sing Se, but not this way.

"Ah, the great city of Ba Sing Se." Iroh said, closing his eyes as he began to think back to that time.

"Greater than you were, apparently." The leader sent a jab at Iroh. He turned his head sharply.

"I acknowledge my defeat at Ba Sing Se. After 600 days away from home, my men were tired, and I was tired." Hize closed her eyes tight as she thought back to the real reason why. Memories of Lu Ten came rushing to her and her face morphed into one of pain. She bit her lip and focused on the ground to keep the tears from falling. Iroh noticed. He let out a loud yawn and leaned against the soldier he was riding against, speaking to clear Hize's mind, as well as his own.

"And I'm still tired." He admitted, closing his eyes to prove the point. He leaned back and took a fall off of the bird they were riding on. At the sound of the thud, Hize turned her moist eyes back, seeing him on the ground.

"Iroh!" She cried out, attempting to make a move towards him, until the guard in front of her placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her movement. Several soldiers got down and helped him up. They began to go again, but Hize noticed that Iroh had slipped off his sandal. They shared a small look and she sent him a genuine smile. She knew Prince Zuko would come for them.

* * *

Morning had come and Hize was shivering. Being pulled out of such a warm climate then being pulled around at night in nothing but a towel could leave a person feeling chilly. One of the soldiers, though, had been nice enough to lend her a spare blanket they had. Despite being enemies to the Fire Nation, they did treat Hize and Iroh respectfully. In truth, Hize adored the Earth Nation. It was a beautiful country and she had always dreamed of going to Ba Sing Se University. She wanted to relish in the books and scrolls they had, learn as much as she could while she had the time. Earth Bending was quite interesting to her as well. She personally felt that Earth Benders were the most determined and fierce of all Benders. Fire Benders were ruled by anger and Water Benders by love; Earth Benders were the only ones that seemed to bend out of pure passion.

She glanced around before nudging the soldier in front of her with her shoulder. He glanced back at her, eyebrow raised. She looked down.

"Thank you for the blanket." She said softly. The soldier smiled at her and turned forward.

"Just because you are a prisoner does not mean we will treat you wrongly. The Earth Nation is better than that, even if you a Fire Nation soldier and a concubine." Hize gripped her fists, clenching her jaw. She sent him a glare out of the corner of her eye.

"I'm not a harlot." She growled out, the man simply ignored her and she glanced over at Iroh, who was distracted by an unseen object in the sky. He looked absolutely shocked and he breathed out a simple 'whoa'.

"What's the problem?" The leader asked him, catching the surprise on Iroh's face. Iroh turned towards him.

"Nothing… Actually, there is a bit of a problem. My old joints are feeling sore and achy, and these shackles are too loose." Hize glanced over at him, a flat look on her face. Did he _really_ just say that? She could barely move they were so tight on her.

"Too loose?" The leader seemed just as unbelieving as Hize. Iroh nodded.

"That's right. The cuffs are loose and they jangle around and bump my wrists." He sent the leader a pathetic look. "It would help me if you would tighten them, so they wouldn't shake around so much." Hize then knew what he was doing. She bit her lip to keep the giggle from escaping.

"Very well." The leader spoke. "Corporal, tighten the prisoners handcuffs." The group came to a halt as the soldier Iroh was riding with got down off their bird and reached out for the handcuffs. Iroh quickly blew smoke out of his nose and slammed the Earth Nationers hand down on the burning metal. The man cried out in agony. Hize slammed her head into the soldier in front of her, sliding off the bird just in time to avoid a blast of fire that Iroh shot from his feet at the soldier that had her. Both she and Iroh rolled over the edge of the small cliff they were on.

Hize cried out as rocks began to slice at her bare body. She was afraid the towel was going to fall off, but the shackles around her body seemed to hold it into place. Suddenly, rocks covered their bodies as Hize tried to squirm, but found she couldn't even move.

"They're too dangerous. We can just carry them to the capital." The corporal said, looking at his leader. "We have to do something now."

"I agree." The leader interjected. "They must be dealt with immediately and severely." Hize struggled to move her head towards Iroh, but gave up when she realized she couldn't even move an inch.

* * *

Several hours later, Hize and Iroh were shackled to a rock across from each other. They were staring into each other's eyes, Hize with fear and Iroh trying to calm her down silently.

"These dangerous hands must be crushed." The leader spoke. He began to bend a rock and levitated it above Hize and Iroh's hands. He began to drop it down and Hize let out a scream, closing her eyes and turning her head away.

"ZUKO!" Hize cried out for her friend. She heard a familiar noise as the rock was kicked aside. Zuko stood on the rock they were chained to, sending a simple kick to each chain, effectively breaking them. Hize stared up at him with her tear-stained face. Her hair was messy and displaced while her skin was dirty from the ground. Not to mention that she was only in a towel.

"Excellent form, Prince Zuko." Iroh said, standing up to fight.

"You taught me well." Zuko responded, helping the rather distraught Hize to her feet. She sniffled slightly, not quite capable for fighting. The Earth Nation soldiers surrounded them.

"Surrender yourselves, it's five against three…" A look was sent towards Hize before they corrected themselves. "Five against two." The leader said, smirking. Hize felt her golden eye twitch. "You're clearly outnumbered."

"That's true." Iroh spoke. "But we're not clearly outmatched." He said, determined. Suddenly, the soldiers sent blasts of rocks at them. Hize stood there, dumfounded, as Iroh and Zuko began to attack the soldiers. It was only a few mere moments of fighting before Zuko and Iroh were victorious.

"Now would you please put on some clothes?" Zuko asked his uncle. Hize ignored them as she walked past them, to the soldier that kept calling her a concubine. She tilted her head to the side as she straddled him. His eyes opened slightly. Zuko began to approach them, curious as to what she was going to do. Swiftly, she pulled her fist back and began to pound it into his face repeatedly. Blood sprayed from his lip and nose as she gripped him by the collar. Zuko gasped and ran over, pulling her off of him.

"A concubine, eh? What do you think now? Not just some whore or piece of ass, right?" She was struggling against Zuko, trying to get back to the now unconscious man. Her lip began to quiver and she slowly stopped, going limp in his arms. She turned and buried her face into his armor, letting out loud sobs.

Being called a whore took its toll on her. She was no whore. She was a warrior. Spending a day nude in front of so many men lowered her self-worth considerably. She was defenseless and nude. Something could have happened, something horrible. She continued to sob into Zuko's chest, which surprised him to say the least. He hadn't seen her cry to hard in a long time. He narrowed his eyes at the soldier before him before wrapping his arms around the now frail fifteen-year-old girl. '_Concubine, eh?'_ Zuko thought bitterly, utterly disgusted. _'The scum got what he deserved.'_


	8. Avatar Roku

A/N: This chapter will start directly where the last one left off; no time skip. Just a heads up. :]

* * *

The only sound that could be heard in the small canyon was the sound of Hize's rough sobs. Prince Zuko stood there stiffly, his arms still around her in attempts to comfort her. He turned his head slightly when he noticed Iroh walking towards them. His uncle looked at his favorite companion with worry, never having seen her like this. Zuko connected with his uncles' gaze and Iroh backed off, understanding that Zuko could handle this. His grip on her tightened when he heard the sound of his soldiers dropping down into the ravine.

Hize cowered into Zuko, not wanting anyone else to see her like this. The prince let out a growl from deep within his throat at the Fire Nation soldiers that stared at her nude form. "What the hell are you looking at? Show some respect!" Flames burst out in a circle from around him and Hize, dying out before they reached his soldiers. His head snapped to the side as one soldier boldly stepped forward.

The soldier was the only one without a helmet on, his black hair hanging to his shoulders freely. He had golden-yellow eyes and pale skin, like most people from the Fire Nation. He held a brown blanket in his hands. "Prince Zuko… Please, use this." He said sadly, turning his gaze away from Hize, pain etched on his face. Zuko recognized him; it was Ziva, Hize's closest friend on the ship besides himself and Uncle. Zuko was hesitant at first before another shake from Hize brought him out of his reluctance to accept help. He snatched the blanket and quickly wrapped it around his warrior.

He grabbed the edges of the blanket it and held it together tightly in front of her. Hize gripped the same area, her hands on his and leaned into him, sniffling. He was silent as he sent a nod of thanks to Ziva and began guiding the barefoot teen towards his Komodo Rhino that was waiting patiently for its master to return. He threw one of his legs over the animal and swung his body up. Zuko glanced down at Hize and held out his hand. She accepted it and he helped her up, sitting her in front of him. She sat with her body sideways, her right shoulder leaning against Zuko's armor. Once all his soldiers were ready to head back to the ship, he flicked the reins to get the rhino to start to move.

The night sky was filled with small dots of white brilliance, which captivated Hize's attention. She didn't want to think about her day, not at all. But she couldn't have that, especially since she knew Zuko would want to talk about it.

"Are you alright?" He asked softly, to where only she could hear. The question set her off again, tears rising and her lip quivering.

"How dare you ask me that." She whispered, narrowing her eyes at his arm. He tilted his head to glance down at her. She continued. "I'm a fifteen year old girl that just spent almost two days absolutely naked and vulnerable to solders twice my age with a deep hatred set in for my nation." She summed up her experience bitterly. "S-Something bad could've happened, Zuko." She said, closing her eyes tight as she thought about everything that could have been.

His eyes narrowed as his face was set forward once again. He tensed up as he too thought about the pain that his friend could have went through, but then realization crossed over him as he recognized that she did go through pain today. "Nothing happened, Hize. Uncle Iroh wouldn't have let it happen. Neither would I." He confirmed. She gripped the blanket tighter.

"Don't say that. Iroh was shackled, he couldn't do anything. And you weren't there." She said, voice soft. "I should've went back to the ship with you." She said, regretting her decision to stay with Iroh. Zuko shook his head.

"I won't argue with that. But… I…" He looked away nervously. He was hesitant to say it. "I shouldn't have left you. I should've stayed with you. It's my fault this happened." He whispered down to her. She tilted her head to look at him with her bloodshot eyes. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she shook her head.

"Zuko… Don't. I'm the idiot here, not you." She said, letting out a short, fake laugh.

"You're not an idiot."

"No, I'm just a whore." She spat venomously, face morphed into a snarl. Suddenly, her face whipped to the side as the sound of flesh meeting flesh filled the air. Zuko's hand was raised, a few centimeters from Hize's now red cheek. Her eyes were wide as she looked up at the prince, surprise written all over her face. He was glaring at her.

"If you say that again, it'll be more than a slap." He warned, furious. She immediately looked away from his commanding gaze, too weakened to do anything more. Slowly, the stinging in her cheek went away and she began to relax more, leaning against Zuko as she slowly drifted off into a surprisingly peaceful sleep.

* * *

The White Dragon stepped out onto the deck of Prince Zuko's small ship. The crew could tell by the way he was stalking about that he was not in a pleasant mood. His gaze was directed towards Prince Zuko and his uncle Iroh, at the bow of the ship. His trek stopped as he stood next to Zuko silently, arms crossed and gaze out to the sea. Zuko glanced over, surprised. He glanced around to see if anyone was nearby before speaking.

"I did not call you here, Dragon. After yesterday, you should rest." He said calmly. The Dragon took in a deep breath before speaking softly, her voice gentle and quiet.

"I'm fine, Zuko. Really, I am…" She said, nodding her head. It was true; after the talk she had with Iroh last night, she felt fine.

"Hize… I am truly sorry for dragging you to those springs with me. If I hadn't… then maybe—" Former General Iroh was cut off by Hize sitting down on her bed swiftly.

"_Iroh, I wanted to go with you. It was my choice… I just didn't know…" Her voice faded as she took in a shaky breath. Iroh walked closer to the sitting girl and placed her hand on her shoulder for strength._

"_I didn't want it to be like that, Iroh." She said softly, glancing up at the older man. He looked down at her with sympathy and love. "I never intended on anyone seeing me like that. I wanted to save that for someone special." Her gaze lowered. A strong, calloused hand slipped under her chin and lifted her head. Iroh forced her to look into her eyes._

"_Hize, listen to me. Just because some fools saw you nude does not mean you have any less value. You had no choice in the matter of what happened. You are still Hize; you are still a warrior and a beauty. And you are still Prince Zuko's—"_

"_I know, Iroh." She said, her eyes lowering. She didn't want him to say it, it hurt too much. Iroh pulled his hand back and folded them into his sleeves. He leveled a steely gaze at her._

"_Remember, you have not lost value. You have gained it. You came out unscathed from an unpleasant situation. You are strong, Hize. I only wish you could see that." He nodded his head to her in a soft bow before leaving her room. Hize stared at her door once he left, twiddling her thumbs absently. Maybe he was right…_

"I see." He said softly before speaking louder so anyone eavesdropping could hear. "You came at the right time, Dragon. We have a lead on the Avatar. He was seen in Senlin Village in the Earth Kingdom." Dragon nodded, affirming that he heard his master. The ship came to a slow stop as they were docking at a port.

"We're heading out there now. You are coming with us." Prince Zuko ordered. The Dragon nodded before following him below to exit the ship. Zuko settled himself on his Komodo Rhino and waited for the bow to be fully lowered. The White Dragon stood next to him; the only soldier allowed to stand equally to Zuko. They began their descent down onto the land, the soldiers following behind them. Once they were all on the ground, they began to follow the pathway that led to the village.

The trip started out silent, until the Dragon began to lag behind Zuko a bit, not interested in standing by prince any longer. Growing bored with walking, the Dragon folded his arms behind his head casually, walking in long strides. A soldier came up next to him, his helmet off and grinning.

"Boring, eh?" He asked. The Dragon turned his head to see Ziva. Hize lifted an eyebrow. Ziva waited for a minute to see if he got a response, and only continued to speak when he received none.

"I'm Ziva, by the way. I patrol the sleeping deck for the Prince, his uncle, and Miss Hize." The Dragon only turned his head forward, effectively ignoring the soldier. Ziva pouted momentarily before continuing.

"I see you're the silent type? Don't worry, that's cool. I'll just, uh, head back to cover the rear…" He said before moving away from the Dragon. Hize was mentally dying of laughter, finding her friend absolutely entertaining. He was trying to befriend the Dragon, which was funny in itself.

Almost an hour later, they arrived to Senlin Village. Zuko slid off of his rhino and approached one of the homes. The Dragon took to looking around the village. Some of the homes were destroyed, almost as if they were burned in a fire. Hize clenched her fists, wondering if the Fire Nation did this. Suddenly, the door to the home Zuko was approaching opened. Out stepped an older gentleman, sighing and looking tired. He gasped when he said the young prince standing in front of him.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Zuko asked, glaring at the man. Suddenly, he shoved the man back, causing him to go flying through his door and back into his home. Zuko stepped forward.

"Seen the Avatar lately?" He asked, smirking. Hize rolled her eyes under her mask before slowly approaching the house as well. The soldiers behind the Dragon started to get ready to approach, but he made a swift gesture of the hand telling them to stay where they were. He leaned against the doorframe as the Prince of the Fire Nation worked it out of the villager where the Avatar was heading. Once the villager spat out where the Avatar was headed, Zuko grew frustrated. For good reason, too. He drew back his fist and was about to slam it into the villagers' face, until a black clothed hand grabbed his wrist firmly. He pulled, trying to get out of the grasp, but it didn't even budge.

Zuko turned his head to scream at the soldier that was holding him back, but saw the White Dragon. He tried to pull his arm back once again, but to no avail. The Dragon simply shook his head, telling the prince that he wasn't going to let him hit the villager. They already got the information they wanted, Zuko shouldn't take his anger out on someone innocent. When the Dragon let go of his arm, he snatched it back and stormed out of the house. He made his way to his rhino and mounted it, moving out without another word.

The Dragon quickly followed him, taking his usual place next to the Prince. The Dragon assumed his typical leisurely position as he easily kept pace with Zuko's rhino. Zuko glared down at him.

"Why did you stop me?" He demanded, not too thrilled about having a subordinate stop him from doing something. The Dragon tilted his head up to peer through the small slits in the mask.

"You got what you wanted, Prince Zuko." Hize responded quietly, soft enough so no soldiers heard her feminine voice. "There was no need to take out your dislike of the answer on that poor soul." Zuko gripped his fists.

"Then how about I take it out on you?" He yelled, thrusting his arm out angrily, fire flowing out with it. The Dragon swiftly brought his brace-covered arm up to block the small amount of flames, knocking it to the side with a fluid motion.

"If you must." Hize responded, not quite caring for Prince Zuko's temper. Zuko only growled before continuing back to the ship quietly.

* * *

"Sailing into Fire Nation waters… Of all the foolish things you've done in your sixteen years, Prince Zuko, this is the most foolish!" Iroh was furious. Hize could tell that much. It'd been a while since she'd seen her elderly friend that angry. The three of them, along with Ziva, were up on the highest viewing deck, following the Avatar. Hize was leaning against the wall to the ship, right next to the door.

"I have no choice, Uncle." Zuko responded, peering through the scope on the deck.

"Have you completely forgotten that the Fire Lord banished you?" He yelled, thrusting his arm out to Hize. "Hize as well!" She rolled her eyes at that, not wanting to be dragged into the argument. Ziva, who was surprisingly in full armor today, moved to stand by her. "What is you are caught?" Iroh questioned. He wasn't angry as much as he was worried. Hize knew that he looked to the two teens as his own children, that he had ever since he lost his son years ago.

"I'm chasing the Avatar. My father will understand why I'm returning home." Zuko argued, turning to look back at Iroh. Hize shook her head, finally believing that Zuko had lost his mind. She knew Ozai; he would not understand. He would be infuriated.

"You give him too much credit. My brother is not the understanding type." Iroh's arms were crossed as he tried hard to talk Zuko out of this. He had been ever since they returned last night with the information that the Avatar was headed to Avatar Roku's temple in the Fire Nation. Zuko ignored him and turned back to the scoped, peering through it. He stopped suddenly and breathed out.

"There they are… Helmsman!" He yelled back. "Full steam ahead." He ordered. Hize shook her head.

"Zuko, this is insane!" She tried to argue now. He turned towards her, eyes narrowed in determination. He took a few steps to her.

"Do not argue with my decision, Hize. I will capture the Avatar, by any means." Hize scowled.

"Even if it means having your only friend being arrested and sentenced to death?" She asked lowly, glaring up at him. Zuko returned it.

"Hize." He said in a warning tone. She sighed and shook her head, raising her hands.

"Alright, alright. But if I get arrested, I'm busting my ass out of prison and killing you, got that?" She asked, jabbing her finger into his chest roughly. He smirked slightly and turned away from her, focusing on the Avatar. Ziva came up to her.

"Don't worry, Hize." He whispered so he wouldn't be chastised for not using honorifics. "I won't let you get arrested." He said, grinning as he threw his arm around the younger girls shoulders and began to lead her to the larger deck below them.. She tilted her head and peered at him.

"Right. Coming from the guy who couldn't take a twelve year old boy." She reminded him. He looked at her blankly.

"Well, it doesn't help that the said twelve year old was the Avatar." He pouted. She rolled her eyes. The ship shook slightly as the catapult they had on the main deck started to rise up. Iroh fanned himself in disgust, Hize wishing she could do the same.

"Really, Prince Zuko? Couldn't you shoot them down with something more fragrant?" He asked, obviously displeased with the stench. Hize had her sleeve up to her nose by now, groaning at the sulfuric smell. Zuko ignored both of them and sent a blast of fire to the large onyx colored block of coal that rested inside the catapult.

"On my mark." Zuko raised his left hand, eyes set on the flying bison that was ahead of them. He waited barely a minute before bringing his hand down. "Fire!" The guard by the catapult sliced down and cut the rope, causing the inflamed stone to go soaring through the air. The bison swerved to the right to avoid it, causing Zuko to growl. Hize lowered her gaze and let out a frustrated scream.

"Zuko!" She said, pointing to the sea. He looked down and took in a breath.

"A blockade!" He cursed. Ahead of them was a blockade consisting of Fire Nation ships, two rows that were passing each other going the opposite direction of one another. Even from their distance, Hize could see the catapults out and ready for battle. She clenched her fists, scowling.

"Technically, " Iroh began, "we're still in Earth Kingdom waters. Turn back now and they cannot arrest you." Iroh suggested casually. Even from behind Zuko, Hize could tell that he was glaring at him out of the corner of his eyes. Zuko took a few steps forward to anticipate what the Avatar would do. He clenched his fists.

"He's not turning around." He said, aggravated.

"Please, Prince Zuko! If the Fire Nation captures you, there's nothing I can do! Do not follow the Avatar." Iroh pleaded with his nephew. Hize moved away from Ziva and walked towards the two. Zuko lowered his head.

"I'm sorry, Uncle." He apologized before making his order. "Run the blockade!" He yelled to the helmsman. Hize scowled as she stopped to stand beside Iroh.

"Zuko…" She began, but stopped when Zuko glared at her. She looked away, knowing he wouldn't give in. She sighed and glanced down at Iroh.

"Well, Iroh…" He glanced up at her. "It was a fun journey. It seems as though I'm going to be going to jail and possibly get executed here in a bit… So please don't forget me." She said dryly, loud enough that Zuko heard her. Iroh shook his head.

"Hize, please… Don't say that." He said, eyes on the ground in pain. Hize realized that what she said had hurt him and she placed her hand on his shoulder. He reached up and grabbed it, smiling softly at the young girl.

Suddenly, it got a bit darker and Hize turned her head. Fire was streaking the sky. The blockade was attacking the Avatar; and their ship was in the way. She gripped Iroh's hand.

"Zuko… If we get hit—"

"Save it, Hize! I'm done with you!" He growled out at her. She pulled her head back in offense, curling her lip at him. The balls of fire were starting to descend upon their ship and Hize was praying that they wouldn't hit. One landed right outside their ship, causing a huge wave of water to come crashing in. She let out a small scream as she was washed a few feet, Iroh stopping her from going any further. He pulled her to him and steadied her. Then it happened; the ship shook fiercely as it was hit in the tail by a ball of fire. She let out another startled scream as she lost her balance. Iroh still steadied her and lowered her down into a crouched position.

"Prince Zuko!" A crewmember yelled. "The engines are damaged! We need to stop and make repairs." Zuko turned away from him.

"Do not stop this ship!" He ordered. Hize growled out at that. She was about to say something until she saw the Avatar's bison dip down to their level. It was going straight for the blockade. One of the ships shot a ball at the Avatar, but he burst through it easily. They swiftly flew through the blockade. That was when realization smacked Hize in the face.

"We're on a collision course!" Her and Iroh yelled at the same time, Iroh helping her stand up now that everything was over.

"We can make it!" Zuko said, determined to get the Avatar. When they were not but a few feet away from crashing, the two Fire Nation ships that they were going to run into stopped, letting them pass. Hize glanced up with Zuko and saw Commander Zhao standing there. She clenched her fists and felt them heat up; a reaction from her anger. Once they were through, they continued to follow the Avatar through Fire Nation waters. The crew had all gone below, leaving Zuko, Iroh, and Hize out on the deck. Hize was glaring at Zuko, and he felt it.

"What?" He snapped at her, scowling. She walked over to him and raised her hand, getting ready to smack him. She bit her lip and turned her head away, disappointed. She shook her head.

"I can't believe you." She breathed out, turning away from him and going over to Iroh. Zuko clenched his fists.

"I need the Avatar, Hize! You know this!" He said, frustrated with her. She turned around quickly.

"He's not of enough value to risk the lives of this entire crew! You're lucky they are even with someone who is classified as a traitor! Let alone two!" She said, gesturing to herself. "People could've died today, Zuko! I could've died! Iroh could've died!" She paused, looking away before adding softly. "You could've died."

"But no one did." Zuko added bluntly, his odd attempt to calm her down. She turned towards him angrily.

"That's not the point!" She yelled, thrusting her hand outwards towards him. Steam flew out of her hand and flowed around her. "The point is that you're too selfish! You don't care about anyone other than yourself! You're relentlessly going after the Avatar without a care for who is with you; who is helping you." She said, shaking her head.

Zuko was about to say something before Hize spoke again. "You know, Prince Zuko. This is the first day in my entire life that I've ever regretted swearing the Dragon's loyalty to you. Now I know that it's going to get me killed for the wrong reasons." She said, turning away from him and heading inside the ship. He watched after her, rather stunned by her declaration. He was used to her being angry with him, she was one of the few who openly expressed all of her feelings towards him and didn't care that he was a prince. But this was the first time she ever told him something that hurt so much.

* * *

"Iroh, where is Zuko?" Hize asked almost an hour later. She had realized that she was out of line when talking to the Prince of the Fire Nation earlier, and she wanted to do the formal thing and apologize. The older man in question looked up from his tea and Hize could tell he was worried.

"He used one of our single ships to go after the Avatar. Zhao is following our smoke trail, and Prince Zuko wanted to use it as a cover." Iroh informed Hize, who clenched her fists in return. She grit her teeth.

"That selfish brat! Why didn't he tell me?" She spat out, angry that the Prince didn't inform her of his decision. Iroh chuckled.

"If I do remember correctly, Hize, you did tell him that you regretted your loyalty, that he was selfish. He assumed it would be selfish of him asking for the Dragon's help, so he went without you." Iroh said, bringing to teacup to his mouth. The cup was snatched out of his hands and Hize swallowed the entire thing in one gulp; something she did when she was angry. Her face morphed into something of disgust and she blinked.

"That was not tea." She muttered softly, looking at Iroh oddly. He only grinned. "It's selfish that he thinks he can do it on his own." She muttered, sitting down beside her elderly friend. Iroh reached out and patted her arm comfortingly, knowing that she too was worried about her friend.

"Do not worry, Hize. Prince Zuko will be alright." He said, sounding as he if was trying to convince himself more than he was trying to convince her. She smiled over at him, silently thanking him. She sat the teacup down on the Pai Sho table.

"So, what exactly did I just drink?" She asked, eyeing the cup that held a burning substance.

"Fire Whiskey." Iroh said bluntly, Hize snorted unlady-like.

"Wow. I figured Fire Whiskey would burn more than that." She said, fiddling with the top of the cup. Iroh raised an eyebrow at the girls' statement.

"I fear you will become a drinker of hard liquor when you are older, Hize." He shook his head, causing the girl to laugh out. She patted his shoulder.

"You know, Iroh. I've been thinking about it myself." She joked with him, sliding the cup away from her and flicking a small black stone that sat on the table. It was a Go piece; a game she was quite fond of. Iroh noticed.

"Would you like to play a game of Go?" He asked, reaching out to begin to set it up. She shook her head.

"Actually, no…." She said, leaning against his shoulder. "I want to Fire Bend." She said, hoping he would offer to train her. Iroh shook his head.

"I do not this that is wise, Hize. You remember what happened last time." He informed her of his decision. She moved away from him, pouting.

"It's not like I meant to burn down that building." She muttered, her lips puckered. He chuckled boldly.

"Well, Hize, Prince Zuko should be returning soon. Why don't we just play a game to pass the time?" He suggested, wiggling his eyebrows. She blinked and glanced over at him.

"Pai Sho?" She asked, grinning. He nodded.

"Of course." He said, setting up the game.

It was late by the time Prince Zuko returned. He didn't look too pleased either. He came storming onto the deck, stalking towards the door to go inside. Hize, who was still playing Pai Sho with Iroh, didn't even look up as she spoke.

"I see you don't have the Avatar." She said coolly, moving a piece forward two spaces. Zuko growled and shot flames at her angrily. She didn't flinch as they died before they reached her. She turned her gaze to him and raised her eyebrow. They stared at each other for a minute before Hize giggled softly, turning back to her game.

'_As much as he frustrates me, I can't help but remain loyal to him.'_ She mentally cursed to herself about how much control he had over her before finishing her Pai Sho game.


	9. The Waterbending Scroll

A/N: Well, I was able to fix up my computer enough to where Microsoft Word worked. The videos are still iffy, they often freeze, but if I wait a moment they'll load and work. It's a pain in my ass, but I love this story too much to even care.

BY THE WAY: I JUST realized that there will be over sixty-one chapters of this story. Because there are sixty-one episodes and I'm doing this thing by episode. D: HOLY CRAP GUYS! Keep the reviews coming; they really help me stay motivated!

[Page Break]

Hize's gaze was directed outside of the window she was in front of. She was in the steering room for their vessel, staring down at Prince Zuko. Zuko was on the main deck sparring with Lieutenant Jee, he had been for a while. The only reason Hize was even watching the prince was because she wanted to see his reaction. Suddenly, the ship moved sharply in a turn, causing the sparring match to be thrown off. Zuko's gaze turned to the window Hize stood in front of. She quickly took a few steps back and turned back to Iroh, who was engrossed in a game of Pai Sho with another crewmember.

She let out a giggle as she slowly lowered herself into a sitting position next to Iroh. She was going to wait patiently for Zuko to storm into the steering room and throw a fit. She didn't have to wait long, the door to the room being thrown open and a rather angry Fire Prince walking in.

"What is the meaning of this mutiny? No one told you to change course!" Zuko yelled to the helmsman. Hize twitched an eyebrow upwards. Iroh glanced up slightly.

"Actually, someone did." Zuko turned towards his uncle. Hize sat, her hands in her lap as she quietly watched on. "I assure you it is a matter of utmost importance, Prince Zuko."

"Is it something to do with the Avatar?" Zuko asked, hopefully taking a step forward. His gaze flickered to Hize hopefully, but only saw an absolutely guilty look on her face.

"Even more urgent!" Iroh said, bringing his hand to his forehead. "It seems I've lost my lotus tile." He said, turning back to focus on his game of Pai Sho. Hize, whose head was now lowered, smiled softly. Iroh quickly slid one of the wooden tiles up on the board.

"Lotus tile?" Zuko asked, not quite understanding.

"For my Pai Sho game." Iroh informed his nephew, his arms folded within his sleeves. "Most people think the lotus tile is insignificant, but is it essential for the unusual strategy that I employ." Iroh said, moving another tile.

"You've changed our course for a stupid lotus tile?" Zuko asked, thrusting his hand to the side. It wasn't as if he was angry, he was just in disbelief. Hize was too when she heard Iroh make the order.

"See…" Iroh started, pointing his hand at Zuko accusingly. "You, like most people, underestimate it's value. Just give me ten minutes to check the merchants at the port nearby." Iroh lifted his finger excitedly. "Hopefully they'll have the lotus tile in stock and I can get on with my life." Iroh's gaze was fixated on the board once again. Hize glanced between the calm Iroh and the now fuming Zuko. Zuko lifted his head up and blew smoke and flames out of his mouth, engulfing the bridge with smoke.

"I'm glad to have such an understanding nephew." Iroh retorted, smiling gleefully. Hize snorted, waving her hand around to clear the smoke from her line of vision.

"Well, it's not like you're all to blame, Iroh." She said softly, blowing smoke out of her face. "I did ask to stop so I could restock on my medical supplies." She admitted openly as she propped her elbow up on the Pai Sho board, resting her right cheek on her fist as her head was tilted to look up at Zuko's still infuriated form.

"It's only in good reason, Prince Zuko." Hize began, smiling softly. "I run out of supplies quickly, as I'm the only one aboard this vessel with medical training. I think it would be in the crews' best interest if we find a full-time doctor to stay aboard, as it's hard for me to do so with… previous commitments." She was, of course, referring to the White Dragon.

Zuko said nothing, only stood there as he took in everything that was happening. His uncle and subordinate ordered for his ship to change course for a Lotus tile and medical supplies. He closed his eyes as he felt a headache coming on, as they've been coming increasingly often lately. He opened his eyes a moment later to stare into Hize's golden orbs. He saw her eyebrows quirk upwards and he made a silent hand gesture to the door, wanting to speak to her outside privately.

Hize watched as the Fire Prince exited the steering room with a slam of the door, her head turning to follow his movement. She left out a soft sigh before placing her left hand on Iroh's right shoulder. He glanced over at her curiously, but tensed up his shoulder for her as she used it as leverage to pull herself up into a standing position. She tucked her hands into his sleeves and bowed to the crew that was at the Pai Sho board politely before turning and following after Zuko.

Unlike the prince, Hize took care to make sure the door didn't slam behind her, pressing one hand against it to ease it back gently. She let out a soft sigh as she closed her eyes and turned around. She opened her eyes to begin walking, but let out a soft scream as she jumped back. Zuko stood directly in front of her, arms crossed and leaning against the opposite wall. She wasn't expecting him to be right there as she turned around, and it startled her because she didn't even sense his presence. She glared at him, her right hand on her heart.

"Zuko." She growled out softly. She said nothing more as he turned around from her and began to lead her out onto the deck. She sighed softly as she followed behind him obediently. Once out onto the deck, they stopped as they moved to the left side. She crossed her arms and leaned her back against the railing. Zuko reached out and placed both hands on the railing, leaning forward slightly as he looked out to the sea.

"You are right, Hize." Zuko confirmed her earlier statement. She raised an eyebrow.

"About?" She asked, though she knew what he was speaking of, she only wanted to hear him say it.

"We will need a medic on this ship. You cannot handle it alone, especially as the Dragon." Zuko sighed out. He turned his gaze towards Hize to gauge her reaction. Her eyes were closed peacefully, a smile on her face.

"Well, when we go to port I can look around for any freelance medics." Hize thought out loud. Zuko shook his head.

"I don't think that's a good idea. The nearest port is infested with pirates." Zuko's voice was filled with disgust. Hize tilted her head to look up at him.

"Well, I guess I'll just be on the lookout for a medic as we go, then." She said softly. He turned towards her.

"What if we don't have enough time to look for a medic?" He asked, eyebrows furrowing. Hize's eyebrows twitched upwards in slight confusion and surprise. She wasn't fully sure what he meant by that. Taking in her response, the prince continued speaking.

"What if we encounter the Avatar again and several of us get hurt? Or if we get attacked at random? I'm positive Zhao isn't too pleased with us right now, I almost expect the Fire Nation to attack us." He thought out loud, his gaze fuzzy, as he wasn't really focused on anything.

"You mean, what would happen if I were to be injured to a degree of not being able to fix up myself or others?" She asked, grinning at Zuko. He narrowed his eyes at her, confirming her statement. "You know, Zuko, I think you might actually care what happens to me."

Zuko clenched his fists at her statement. He scowled at her before growling out. She raised her hands in mock defense as she laughed softly and took a step back. "Relax, Zuko. I know you care." She said softly, turning away from him and beginning her trek to her bedroom.

"I'll keep my eyes open to a medic. Don't worry, I promise not to get too beat up." She said, shooting him a soft smile as she retreated back into the vessel they were aboard.

[Page Break]

"I've checked all the shops on this pier. Not a lotus tile in the entire marketplace." Iroh complained, using his hands to express his frustration. He stood next to a rather angry Prince Zuko, who had his hands confined to his back in attempt to stop him from lashing out. Hize stood on the other side of Zuko, a rather large brown sack in her hands. It was filled with medical supplies. She tilted her head to glance over at Zuko.

"It's good to know this trip was a waste of time for _everyone!_" He growled out, getting into Iroh's face when he said 'everyone'. Hize giggled as Uncle Iroh gave him a questioning look.

"Not for me." Hize informed, lifting her bag off the ground with a grunt. She held it up a bit and blinked, glancing up into Zuko's amused gaze. A gust of wind blew by and she titled to the side, grunting as the weight of the bag forced her to land of the ground. As Zuko was trying to contain his laughter due to her fall, Iroh spoke.

"Quite the contrary!" Iroh spoke, gesturing to Zuko. "They always say the only thing better than finding something you're looking for is finding something you weren't looking for at a great bargain!" Iroh was excited as he watched several guards walk by with all the objects he had bought for music night. Hize giggled from her spot on the ground, wanting it to be music night already. A pale hand was stuck into her vision and she followed it up, seeing Ziva standing above her. She grasped his hand and he hoisted her up onto her feet. Once she was steady, she began to reach down to pick up the bag again. But Ziva reached down and grabbed it, tossing it over his back casually before turning away from her and heading up to the ship with the rest of the guards.

"You bought a SoonKi Horn?" Zuko questioned, watching the musical instrument as the guard walked by with it. Hize grinned, hoping she got a chance to play it.

"It's for music night on the ship!" Iroh informed his nephew, grinning. "Now if we only had someone who would play it." He suggested subtly as he folded his hands behind his back and walked away. Hize followed him with her hand raised excitedly, Zuko following.

"I'll play!" She said, smiling at Iroh. He grinned over at her and threw his arm around her shoulders.

"I like your spirit, Hize." He said, throwing Zuko a sly look from over his shoulder. When Iroh removed his arm from around her shoulders, Hize latched onto it and started to pull him along. Suddenly, her eyes caught onto a large ship that had red masts.

"Oh! Iroh! That looks promising." She said, pointing at it as she pulled him along excitedly. She felt his own excitement increase as the two enjoyed their favorite pastime; shopping together. Once they made their way up to the deck, Hize let go of Iroh's arm as she moved away from him and browsed the merchandise that was laid out on the deck. She followed the flow of objects into the ship's cabin, eyes moving from item to item. She was vaguely aware of Iroh and Zuko behind her as she stopped in front of a weird monkey statue. Its eyes were red and seemed to glow. Her eyebrows shot up as she stared at it in confusion. She shuddered and took a step back, bumping into someone. She glanced up and saw Zuko staring down at her. She quickly acted by moving behind his arm, peeking at the monkey over his shoulder. "It's creepy." She said softly, wrinkling her nose up.

Iroh grinned at it. "Oooh! That is handsome!" Iroh exclaimed. Hize sputtered out a string of nonsense before glaring at him, hoping he wouldn't buy it. "Wouldn't it look magnificent in the galley?" Iroh asked, reaching for it.

"No!" Hize disagreed, grabbing his wrist and pulling his hand away from the creepy figure. "It's creepy, Iroh." She almost whined, looking at it in disgust. She never liked monkeys, ever. Iroh blinked at her before moving his hand from her grasp and picking up the monkey. Hize threw her hands up in the air in exasperation and turned away from him, seeing Zuko turn away from them and face the pirates that hosted the little bazaar.

"Tell me, did this monk have and arrow on his head?" Zuko asked, glaring at the pirates. The two pirates turned towards him and gave him a dark look. When they affirmed his thoughts, Zuko grinned viciously. Hize sighed, folding her arms in her sleeves as she silently approached Zuko, standing behind him.

Hize remained silent as Zuko conversed with the pirates, her gaze kept on one pirate that seemed to regard her with particular interest. He was rather intimidating, to say the least. About 6'4" and certainly muscular; his arm muscles the size of watermelons on his biceps, rippling even more as he crossed his arms over his broad chest. His skin was deeply tanned, almost a dirt-brown color, and he happened to have a noticeable gold stud on each cheek, causing pseudo-dimples to appear as he grinned at Hize. His hair was pitch black and drawn into micro-braids, gold and silver beads littered throughout his hair as it was piled onto his head into a high ponytail. He was shirtless, revealing many dark scars across his body; wearing a pair of baggy black pants held up with a black sash. His eyes were odd compared to the rest of him; they were an unusually bright green. His head tilted to the left as he stared Hize down.

She was pulled out of her stare down as the person next to her roughly elbowed her. She hesitated a moment before breaking her gaze, turning to look at Prince Zuko. He was glaring at her. "Did you even hear that, Hize?" He growled out. She merely blinked. He sighed in frustration.

"We're going after the Avatar; teaming up with these pirates." The pirates around them didn't seem phased by the disgusted tone of his voice. Hize took in a deep breath and turned her gaze back to the dark man across the counter from her. She allowed a minuscule smirk to cross her face as she turned swiftly on her heel, heading to the ship with out another work to prepare for their journey.

[Page Break]

The Dragon stood at the bow of the small, exploring ship as they moved down the river. Prince Zuko was in front of him, the captain of the pirates next to him. The White Dragon turned his head when he heard a small noise, his golden eyes connecting with bright green ones. The dark-skinned pirate from earlier was standing to the side, staring at him. Internally, the Dragon had a moment of panic, wondering if the man could sense her identity. But she shrugged it off, not really caring if he did. Her identity was bound to be revealed sometime.

"Shouldn't we stop to search the woods?" The captain questioned, causing the Dragon to turn his head to the two males in front of him. The captain had turned his head to look at Zuko questioningly.

"We don't need to stop. They stole a Waterbending Scroll, right?" Zuko questioned, nodding his head slightly as he clenched his fists. He didn't turn his gaze from straight again.

"Mmhm." Zuko had turned his head only slightly as the captain mumbled his response, a serious look on his face as he scanned the shoreline.

"Then they'll be on the water." The captain must have agreed with Zuko's statement, because he stepped forward slightly and started to scan the shore intently. He wanted his scroll back. The Dragon casually moved his way to the edge of the ship, leaning against the rail. His grip on the tonfa-blades was slack, causing them to drop a bit. They were attached to the palm of his gloves, though; so they never fell, only remained uncomfortable as the weight pulled on his arm.

The sun was going down fast, and visibility was lowering. Soon enough, it was pitch black outside, save for the crescent moon and stars in the sky. It was time for Zuko to rely on the Dragon, whose hearing had been trained since birth. He would hear the sound of water being manipulated, even in this darkness. The Dragon shared a glance with Zuko, who merely nodded. The masked man walked past his superior and to the very bow of the ship, leaning forward slightly as he closed his eyes and let his hearing free.

"What's he doing?" A deep, gravely voice questioned. The Dragon knew immediately it was the dark man.

"Quiet, Basa." The captain spoke, glaring back at his subordinate. But he was just as curious.

"He's trying to find the monk and your thief. He can hear abnormal flow of the water, meaning Waterbending." Zuko said, glancing up at the older, taller man before turning his gaze back on his warrior.

The Dragon focused. It was quiet, the only sounds being heard was the water flowing as the ships made their way through the river, and insects chiming their cries into the night. The flow of the water was slow, even, moving in soft laps as it flowed around the moving metal and wood pushing through it. Small ripples would surface and resound as fish came up momentarily as they so often did. Nothing like water being forced up and out of the stream and back into it. Nothing so violent to break the flow of the peaceful—

The Dragon's head snapped to the right, his hand immediately lifting to point in that direction. He could faintly hear a frustrated female voice, as well as the sound of water being manipulated in an unnatural state. Zuko smirked, glancing up at the captain before ordering the helmsman to head in that direction.

The ship came to a rather noisy dock as it pushed itself ashore. The Dragon sent Zuko and irritated look, silently telling them that any cover they had was officially blown. He took in a deep breath before suddenly jumping over the side of the ship and slipping into the forest. Zuko didn't mind such an act, knowing that the Dragon was going to cut off anyone trying to escape from them. Zuko gestured to everyone on board to get off.

The Dragon slipped silently through the trees, ears capturing the sound of bushes moving. He gripped the tonfa-blades before sliding out of the foliage, eyes dead-set on a tan girl in blue; obviously Water Tribe. When the Dragon was a mere foot from the girl, she let out a gasp as what she saw through the bushes and backed up, bumping into the Dragon. He reacted immediately, his arms wrapping forward until the blades were pressed against her throat. But the Water Tribe girl reacted as well, using the water nearby to her advantage as she allowed the water to flow through the air and hit the masked man in the face. He spit the water out angrily, his hair drenched. He moved his arms only slightly, but it was enough for the girl to get away. But unfortunately, she ran straight into Zuko, who grasped her wrists tightly.

"Don't worry. I'll save you from the Dragon." He said softly, glaring into the girls' eyes. The Dragon rolled his eyes, flicking his arms to get the water off of his blades. He took a step forward before sharing a look with Zuko. He reached into the sash around his waist and pulled out some rope, tossing it to a nearby pirate.

The pirate and Zuko then quickly tied her to a tree to avoid possible escape. Then they separated themselves; the pirates to the right of her and the Fire Nation to the front left of her. Zuko stood over her, glaring down at her vulnerable form. A surge of anger ran through the Dragon suddenly as she realized what position the girl was in; and Hize would be pissed if she were in the same position. But her job as a warrior took over her womanly concern as she shook the thought out of her head and took a tiny step forward. The Dragon didn't miss the same tiny step that Basa took out of the corner of his eyes.

"Tell me where he is, and I won't hurt you or your brother." The Water Tribe girl, Katara as the Dragon had discovered, glared at the prince.

"Go jump in the river!" She growled out, scowling viciously as him. Zuko was unphased; he looked away before taking a different approach. His voice turned soft as he looked at her in almost a desperate manner, moving forward slightly.

"Try to understand…I need to capture him to restore something I've lost." He began to circle around her and the tree, eyes on her the entire time. "My honor." But she was stubborn; she wouldn't even look at him. He leaned down close to her ear. "Perhaps in exchange, I can restore something you lost." The Dragon felt tension rising in his muscles, not too pleased about the sight before him as Zuko pulled out the necklace he had found a while back and holding it to her neck. It was intimate; and Hize didn't like it one bit. A low growl came from the Dragon's throat, piercing the silence. Zuko sent him a sharp look, but the predatory sounds didn't fade.

"My mother's necklace!" Katara exclaimed, ignoring the Dragon. Zuko pulled away, the growl ceasing. He dangled it next to her with a smirk on his face. He moved away from her, holding it teasingly out. She simply glared at him. "How did you get that?" She demanded, leaning forward slightly.

"I didn't steal it, if that's what you're wondering." Zuko had come to a stop directly beside the Dragon, five feet from Katara. Prince Zuko was aware that his close proximity to his warrior would calm the Dragon's rather… jealous nerves. "Tell me where he is." Zuko demanded once again.

"No!" Katara yelled, still defiant. The captain and the pirates had grown increasingly frustrated.

"Enough of this necklace garbage." The captain said, causing the rest of his crew to take defensive positions. He clenched his fist and raised it slightly. "You promised us the scroll. Zuko smirked and pulled the scroll out from behind his back, lighting a flame with his free hand and holding the scroll above it.

"I wonder how much money this is worth…" He said at length, eyeing the pirates smugly. The pirates voiced their worry with a course of 'no's. Zuko's gaze darkened. "A lot apparently. Now you help me find what I want and you get this back, and everyone goes home happy. Searched the woods for the boy and meet back here." The captain growled out his frustration.

"Fine." He said, turning away. His crew followed after him. By now, it was close to morning. In about an hour or so, the sun would be fully up. The Dragon reached his hand up to scratch his still damp hair, hoping the bun wouldn't come undone. If the soldiers saw that the Dragon had waist-length black hair, they would know exactly who it was.

A chill filled the area as a wind picked up the frost of the river and rushed it at the group of Fire Nation soldiers. The Dragon tightened the cloak around himself before the sounds of shivering caused him to turn his head to the side. He saw Katara still tied to the tree, shivering almost violently. He glanced around before disappearing into the bushes, heading to the ship. He returned fifteen minutes later, a blanket in his hands. He approached the girl, who glared viciously at him. But she was stunned when he placed the blanket over her shoulders, tucking it behind her gently. Katara stared at him for a while before speaking.

"T-Thank you?" She was undeniably confused about the situation. The man who had put blades to her throat was now giving her a blanket to keep her warm. The Dragon said nothing, only bowed his head gently and turned away from him. Zuko eyed the Dragon.

"The hell was that?" He asked softly, glancing back at the Water Tribe girl. Hize shrugged.

"I can just relate to her position." She said softly so no one would overhear, or at least she thought so one would overhear. Blue eyes brightened at the sound of her voice, utterly surprised that such a warrior was of the female gender. But nothing was said to announce this to the group.

Rustling in the bushed caused the White Dragon to stand at the ready, gripping the tonfa-blades tightly in his hands. Iroh, who had joined them, was standing beside Katara casually. The rest of the Fire Nation stood; ready to get this situation over with. The pirates came waltzing through the foliage, two younger boys with them. One was the boy Hize knew as the Avatar; short and bald with a big blue arrow on his head. The second boy was from the Water Tribe, like the girl. Hize hadn't been too close to the boy before, so she was taking in his features. He was thin and tall, short hair that was shaved on the sides and pulled into a high ponytail, and blue eyes just like his sister. He was rotating his wrists around to get out of the bindings that they were in. For a minute, the pirates just stood about two yards from the Fire Nation, staring.

"Nice work." Zuko complimented, happy to have the Avatar in such close reach. Katara spoke suddenly.

"Aang, this is all my fault!" She cried out to the boy, leaning forward to test the bonds she was in. Zuko walked forward to give the Waterbending scroll to the pirates.

"No, Katara, it isn't." Aang said softly, staring at the girl. Iroh spoke.

"Yeah… it kind of is." The Dragon smiled under the mask at the expression that Katara sent the older man. Zuko ignored everything as he spoke.

"Give me the boy." He demanded. The pirate captain seemed almost amused by that demand.

"You give us the scroll." The captain demanded with equal humor in his voice. Sokka, the Water Tribe boy, spoke up in a disbelieving voice.

"You're really going to hand over the Avatar for a piece of parchment?" He asked, eyebrow rose. He didn't see the logic in that. The Dragon let out a deep groan, knowing that a fight will ensue.

"Don't listen to him!" Zuko said, pointing at the boy. "He's trying to turn us against each other!" Zuko was livid about the situation. But the captain wasn't interested. His gaze shifted from Sokka to Aang.

"Your friend is the Avatar?" He asked, intrigued about the new piece of information. Sokka slid over to be by Aang.

"Sure is! I bet you'll fetch a lot more on the black market than that fancy scroll." A grin was placed on his face, his eyes narrowed smugly. Hize couldn't help but grin at his logic; she would be doing the same thing in his position. Zuko clenched his fists before yelling out.

"Shut your mouth you Water Tribe peasant!" He demanded pointing at the teenage boy. The Dragon, sensing the tension rising between the pirates and the soldiers, tilted his head to the side, a lock of dark hair falling from the bun and having to his chin.

"Yeah, Sokka." Aang said softly, drawling it out slightly. "You really should shut your mouth." He was worried that the pirates would just take him instead, that was more trouble than he wanted right now. But the teen didn't listen to either of them. He tilted his head towards one of the pirates, grinning smugly.

"I'm just saying, it's good business sense. Just imagine how much the Fire Lord would pay for the Avatar. You guys would be set for life." The Dragon flexed his fingers, starting to grow increasingly agitated. He knew how much this meant to Zuko; and he wanted him to have his chance. But the teen was starting to mess things up, and it wasn't making the Dragon any happier. The captain pointed to Prince Zuko.

"Keep the scroll. We can buy a hundred with the reward we'll get for the kid." The captain turned away from the Fire Nation, his crew following behind him. Zuko scowled, fists still in tight balls.

"You'll regret breaking a deal with me." He said, nodding his head to the Dragon. The White Dragon stood there for a moment before twirling his tonfa-blades rapidly; the sound of whizzing air the only thing that was heard. Suddenly, he kicked off the ground and was almost flying over the ground. When he was two feet away from the pirates, he touched down on the ground gently before kicking himself back into the air, crouching slightly and bringing his arms up so his elbows, along with the sharp point of the tonfa, was pointed down towards the captain of the pirates. Just as the captain would've gotten sliced, a scimitar smashed against the tonfa, knocking the Dragon back slightly. He touched the ground with his feet, the dirt coming loose and flying around as he continued to slide.

Basa was the one who had attacked, and he seemed to be enjoying his chance to take down one of the most legendary assassins of the Fire Nation. The Dragon didn't pay any attention to what was going on around him, just focused on Basa. The large man shot towards the smaller masked man with surprising speed. Sensing the airflow, the Dragon quickly moved to the left as the scimitar was brought down where he once stood. He brought his right arm up and went to elbow Basa in the back, hoping to pierce him quickly. But the dark-skinned pirate seemed to have sensitive senses as well, as he swiftly turned and brought his scimitar up to block. The Dragon growled before slamming his left tonfa into the scimitar, the impact causing both weapons to wobble slightly. There was a struggle for power in that moment, Basa pushing with one hand and the Dragon with both hands.

Suddenly, smoke filed by the two. Taking advantage of the sudden loss in sight, the Dragon kicked off the ground and jumped into the air. He did a simple back flip before standing still, opening his ears up. He heard the sound of fighting all around him, but nothing headed towards him. He shuffled to the right slightly to try and get out of the smog, but a whoosh of air caused him to duck quickly. He narrowly avoided the scimitar as it was set to take his head off. He reacted instantly, bringing his fit forward to slam into Basa's toned stomach. A grunt was heard, but nothing more. The Dragon knew that barely did anything so he quickly used his other hand and shot a flame punch to the pirate. Basa brought his scimitar up and sliced through the flames, hissing only slightly as they licked at his shoulders and arms. He then glared at the masked-man's silhouette and brought his scimitar over to chop at his side. The masked-man quickly dropped to the ground and brought his legs out, catching the buff man off guard as his legs were knocked from underneath him. He grunted as a weight was placed on top of his stomach. He opened his eyes to see the White Dragon straddling his stomach, his hand raised. He didn't have time to react as the handle of the Dragon's right tonfa smashed into his forehead, knocking him out cold.

The Dragon stood slowly, feeling his muscles tense up. He winced as he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, glancing down to see his cloak torn slightly, blood seeping through. His golden eyes widened considerably. _'He got me! The bastard actually got me!'_ Hize thought as she rotated her shoulder, a soft whine coming from her lips.

The Dragon heard the Avatar's voice from within the cloud of smoke, and suddenly all the smoke disappeared. All eyes were on Aang and he blinked nervously, before bending the smoke back into it's original position to give him some cover. The Dragon knew they were going to escape, and he couldn't let that happen. As he began his trek out of the smog, he slipped on something. He caught his balance just in time and glanced down. Hize's eyebrows shot up from under the mask as she bent down and studied the object. She smiled to herself and slipped it into her sash before flipping out of the smoke. Her body landed in a crouched position, three feet from the crawling Sokka. The Dragon growled before tackling him. He let out a yelp as he struggled. The Dragon gripped his collar and held him up slightly, straddling his hips. Hize tilted her head to the side as she grinned. _'He's kind of cute.'_ She mused to herself. He went to take a swing at her but she grabbed his wrist and pinned to under her leg.

"Stop." She hissed out, her voice only slightly feminine. The boy stopped struggling, but had a confused expression on his face. She pulled her hand away from his collar and reached into her sash, pulling out the Waterbending scroll. She glanced behind her to make sure no one was looking as she slipped it into his tunic.

"For your sister." She said, her voice betraying her disguise. Sokka's blue eyes widened greatly and he opened his mouth to stay something, but she put her hand over his mouth. "Go!" She growled out, moving her body off of him. He stood and stared at her momentarily before Aang came bursting out of the smoke. He then took off running with Aang towards Katara, who was working on getting the pirate ship into the river.

Hize sighed softly and closed her eyes, stretching up into the morning sun. She opened her eyes once again and was shocked to see Zuko's boat floating past her. She clenched her fists, thinking he left her, until she saw the pirates onboard. She tilted her head back and saw Zuko glaring at the ship as he ran after it. He passed Hize with no words being exchanged. She blinked slightly and walked after him, Iroh quickly catching up to her. She picked up her pace to a jog as she kept pace with Iroh. She glanced over at him, but he refused to look at her. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, she knew that he was aware of her gaze and he usually always met it. Unless he was upset with her.

She pushed that thought aside as she saw the pirate ship turn sideways to avoid going down the waterfall it was in front of. Her eyes followed the river back and noticed Zuko's ship heading directly for it. She sucked in her breath with a glare, watching as the boat crashed into the pirate ship. They were reaching the edge of the cliff and Zuko wasn't happy.

"My boat!" He yelled, glaring down at the wreckage. Iroh stopped five feet behind him, panting for breath. Hize stopped as well, crossing her arms. Iroh stood up and folded his hands within his sleeve and blinked. He laughed slightly, sniffing.

"Prince Zuko, you're really going to get a kick out of this. The Lotus tile was in my sleeve the whole time!" He gave his nephew a cheesy grin as he held up the tile. Hize groaned, placing a gloved hand on her masked face, knowing Zuko wasn't going to be too happy about this. The Fire Prince turned around slowly, eyes narrowed dangerously. He was growling and breathing heavily as he snatched the tile from his uncle and threw it down into the river below with a yell of frustration. Iroh pouted slightly, blinking at the absence of his tile from his hand. Hize tilted her head to the side as she reached into her sash and pulled out a lotus tile, handing it to Iroh.

"I got your back." She said, giving him a grin from under her mask. Iroh looked at her questioningly, eyes narrowed slightly. His expression was serious as he took the tile away from her gently, turning away and saying nothing as he left. Hize glanced over at Zuko, who was still fuming about losing the Avatar and his ship. She couldn't' help but wonder why Iroh was upset with her.


	10. The Talk

A/N: Whew. Last chapter was like, ten pages long. D: Some have mentioned they want more Zuko/Hize love. I hope this chapter satisfies you. ;]

[Page Break]

The door slammed behind her as Hize stormed into her room. She ripped the mask off her face and tossed it to her plush bed, hearing a dull thump as it landed on the deep crimson comforter. She brought her pale hand up to her damp hair and ran it through, squeezing some of the water out as her bun came loose. She stood there, wringing her mid-back length black hair out, listening to the sound of the water drip onto the floor mixed with the even breathing of the man behind her.

Hize tilted her head back slightly to glance at the shorter man before unfastening her cloak and wadding it up. She tossed it to the corner carelessly before looking down at the palms of her hands. She didn't say anything as her fingers began to work on the leather buckle the kept the tonfa-blade's handle in place. The sound of her right tonfa clattering to the ground broke the silence they stood in as it echoed off the walls.

"What's your problem?" She snapped out at the older gentleman. He didn't say anything at all, just watched her with that same serious expression on his face. His eyes were narrowed slightly at her, causing her to become nervous. Iroh had been angry with her before, but it was rare. She couldn't think of a reason as too—

"You saw." She said simply, turning away from him. She unfastened the buckle on the left tonfa and tossed it to her bed. She sat down gingerly on the edge of the mattress, placing her elbows on her knees and resting her head in her hands. Iroh crossed his arms.

"You are lucky, Hize." He chided, shaking his head. "Imagine what would have happened if Zuko saw you instead of I." He said, not needing to say anymore. Hize frowned, glancing up at him.

"I know. He would have abandoned me, even after everything we've been through. He would've left me right there on the spot." Her lip was curled up in disgust. As much as she cared for Zuko, she most certainly did not approve of most of his actions. Iroh clenched his fists, eyebrows furrowing.

"You are wrong!" He said, voice low and fierce. "He would not have abandoned you! He would have turned you over to either the Fire Nation or the Earth Kingdom! You would be imprisoned for either treason or just simply being part of the Fire Nation. Even worse, Hize, he might have injured you." He shook his head. Hize glanced up at him, eyes narrowed.

"I'd like to see him try." She growled out. Iroh sighed out in exasperation.

"This is the problem, Hize! You are always looking for a fight! You instigate his anger, and I am afraid that one day you will receive it. And I will not be there to protect you from my temperamental nephew." He looked away from her. Hize shook her head slightly.

"Iroh…" Her insecurities suddenly kicked in, her low self-esteem starting to show itself. "You shouldn't care so much. I'm just a warrior; I'll die eventually." She said softly, looking down. Iroh's eyes narrowed fiercely as he placed his hand on her shoulder heavily.

"Do not speak like that. You are my future niece, Hize." He shook his head. "You are no warrior to me. You and Zuko… you are like my children. Ever since…" He trailed off and he closed his eyes tightly to stop the tears from escaping. Hize's hand immediately when to the one that rested on her shoulder for comfort. She knew how hard losing his son was. There was a silence before Iroh regained himself and spoke again.

"I am truthfully proud of what you did back there. I only wish Prince Zuko would realize that there is more to life than his honor." Iroh said, sighing as his hand slid off of her shoulder. He took a seat next to her with another sigh. Hize smiled slightly.

"I have a feeling he will eventually. He does have us to guide him." She said, nudging him slightly. Iroh chuckled loudly before wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"You know, Hize. I must admit… If I were decades younger, I would have to challenge my nephew for the position as your fiancé." He said, wiggling his eyebrows at her. Hize rolled her eyes with a grin.

"I know, Iroh, I know." She said, patting his shoulder. They shared a glance before both of them went into a fit of laughter. Hize held her hands to her stomach as her muscles began to clench, tears welling in her eyes as she laughter the hardest she had in a long time. Iroh was almost mirroring her position exactly.

Ten minutes later, the laughter died down and Hize took in a breath, wiping a tear away. "I love you, Iroh. You're like the loving father I wish I had." She said, smiling at him. Iroh glanced at her, his lips curled upwards happily. He leaned over and pressed his lips to her forehead gently. He pulled back as he stood.

"And you, Hize, are like the daughter I had only dreamed of." He bowed his head to her before moving out of the room. Hize's golden eyes remained on the door for a while before she stood up, stretching her tense muscles. The laugh-attack had tightened her to her core, and it was rather uncomfortable. She picked up the Dragon's clothing and tossed them under her bed, where she kept them now. She tugged her boots off and slid them under as well. She stood straight as she swiftly undid the sash, letting it fall to the floor as her pants slid down. The sash wasn't an accessory or a place to store things; it was what held up her pants, as it was hard for her to find training pants in her petite size. Next she pulled her gloves off, kicking them under the bed with the sash and her pants.

She sighed as she stood in just the red cheongsam, eyes drifting towards the wardrobe behind her. She rolled her eyes to herself as she slipped the cheongsam off and stood there with only bandages wrapped around her torso from just above her breasts to just below her navel. Her black panties were a surprising contrast against her pale skin. Her body was so pale, even paler than the normal ivory Fire Nation skin tone. But it was only because she usually stayed aboard the ship as Hize, and her entire body was covered as the White Dragon.

She was slim, too. She had the soft curves from her chest, but they dove down into an hourglass shape, sinking in the sides by her stomach and letting out for her hips. Her limbs were long and toned, showing obvious muscle. The bandages on her stomach hid the well-toned six-pack she maintained daily. Most of her figure came from her rather active lifestyle, but she did watch what she ate as a backup.

A warm, wet trail slid down from her shoulder to her collarbone, causing Hize to glance in the mirror. The wound Basa gave her. It wasn't deep, she noted to herself as she reached over for the medical kit that was placed beside her bed. Some of the blood had already started to dry and crust. Hize grimaced as she poured some alcohol onto a small cotton pad. She hated alcohol; it always made her cry. She sat down on the edge of her bed and took in a breath, closing her eyes. She mentally readied herself before wiping at the wound with the pad. She hissed loudly, biting her lip.

Her already tender wound began to sting wildly. The burn, unfortunately, moved down into her bicep. She blinked her moist eyes as she continued to wipe gently, watching as the pad soon became a bright red color. Once the wound was fully cleaned, she tossed the pad to the ground with a sniff. She wiped her eye casually before reaching into the kit again, this time pulling out bandages. She wrapped her shoulder the best that she could in the awkward position. It was tight, but she wasn't sure if it was stable.

Hize stood, approaching the dresser now that her wound was fully dressed. She swiftly pulled out a few items from the closet, but they weren't her regular robes. She pulled on the dark gray pants before tying a red ribbon around each ankle over the pants, holding them in place, doing the same to her waist. She tugged the red v-neck tunic over her head, successfully hiding her shoulder wound, with only a bit of her chest bandages showing. Her pulled her hair out from the tunic and pulled it into a high ponytail. It wasn't as wet as before, but it was still damp.

She turned when she heard the sound of her door opening, raising an eyebrow at her visitor. "Yes?" She asked at length.

"I saw your wound." Was the blunt reply that came as the door closed behind him. Hize tilted her head slightly to the right.

"And?" She blinked, not quite getting what he was saying. He brought a pale hand to his head and rubbed his temple.

"I was wondering if you're alright." He muttered, looking away from her. Hize rolled her eyes at Zuko's behavior.

"I'm fine. Nothing but a flesh wound." She said, lifting her arm up and rotating her shoulder to prove her point, but winced loudly as it was still tender. Zuko glared at her and walked forward.

"Fine, huh?" He said, grabbing her arm roughly. She cried out as he pulled her tunic sleeve down to slip her arm out of the garment. He clicked his tongue at the bad bandage work and reached behind her to the medical kit. She watched him silently as he undid her bandage.

"I already did that." Hize said quickly when he picked up the alcohol. He glanced over at her and allowed a smirk to cross his face as he poured some out onto a pad. Her eyebrows furrowed as she watched him bring it closer to her wound.

"I already did it!" She whined out, pulling her shoulder away. He grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him. He sent her a look that immediately made her stop, his eyes boring into her own. Their gazes didn't falter as he pressed the pad gently to her wound. He rotated his hand gently, swirling over the wound. Hize didn't even wince; she didn't even feel the burn. She could only feel the flames from his eyes as they singed her own.

Zuko pulled his hand away from her shoulder, tossing the pad to the ground with a soft thump. He leaned forward as he reached behind her again to grab the bandages, but their gaze didn't break. When he was hovering just over her, she took advantage of the situation, suddenly craning her neck up and pressing her lips to his cheek. He pulled back suddenly, looking down at her from his standing position. His eyebrows were furrowed as he knelt down in front of her, not looking her in her eyes as he bandaged her wound.

"What was that for?" He asked softly, his lips pursed. Hize smiled slightly.

"A thank you, for being so kind to me today." He glanced up at her as he tied the bandage, done with dressing her wound properly. He sighed, frowning. Hize furrowed her brows, placing a hand on his armored shoulder.

"What's wrong, Zuko?" She asked softly. She was stunned as he knocked her hand away roughly, standing up.

"Oh please. Don't bother to be concerned." He growled out at her, clenching his fist. "You're only concerned because you have to be, as my subordinate and as my betrothed." He turned away from her as she stood.

"You think I do this because I have too?" She laughed shortly. "I could have easily ran from this arrangement. I chose to remain as your fiancée because I wanted to, not because I had to." She clenched her fists in anger. How _dare_ he assume that? He knew very well her feelings for him! Zuko shook his head.

"I can't believe that. How someone like you even _want_ to be with someone like me?" He growled out, glaring down into her eyes. "Look at us! You're a beautiful warrior with too much loyalty to be concerned about her own status! And I'm just a scarred and vicious prince banished from his own nation…" He looked down, casting his glare to the ground.

Hize reached out and placed her hand under his chin, lifting his head gently with a smile. She leaned towards him, placing her forehead against his own. "None of that matters to me, Zuko." She moved her hand to rest it on the side of his face that was scarred, rubbing her thumb over it gently. "I love you, and I always will. I agreed to this arranged marriage because I wanted to be your wife. I've loved you for years. I only wish you could see that." She whispered, closing her eyes as she pressed her nose against his. She felt his hot breath on her chin and internally sighed with happiness. It was rare for them to be so intimate with one another.

"Hize…" Zuko whispered, causing her to open her golden eyes. The first thing she saw was Zuko's own staring into hers. She hummed softly for him to continue. "For years you've been by my side… One of the only people I can count on. I haven't been able to say it because I wasn't ready… but I love you, Hize." He said softly, bringing an arm to her side, placing his hand on her back. "I have for a while now, but I've been so stubborn to let you know." He paused before speaking again.

"I know you want this marriage, but I couldn't help but have doubts." He said softly, smiling slightly. "I'm glad you and I were banished together." He whispered, his breath still hot on Hize's chin. Her eyes traveled down his face to his slightly parted lips and she bit her own pink ones.

"Me too…" She said before leaning her lips towards his. She was taken aback when he pushed forward with his head and pulled her to him with his arms, giving a firm kiss on her lips. Her eyes immediately closed as she slipped her arms up to his neck. His lips were soft; she knew that from previous experience. But this time, something was different. It felt more meaningful now that he had expressed his feelings to her. It felt… right.

Hize felt his lips part slightly as he moved them a little to the left. She made a soft noise when his hands began to trace circles across her back. He seemed to react in a positive manner as he tightened his grip on her and pressed his lips harder against her. It was nice, truly it was, but Hize couldn't take it any longer.

She pulled back quickly, causing him to look at her in confusion. Realization crossed his face as he watched her breath in a slightly quickened pace. People need to breath to survive, and that was a pleasure that had been cut off during their kiss. He moved his arms from around her and trailed his fingers down her arms softly, before grabbing her hands gently.

"You should probably get some sleep. It's late and I want that wound to heal." He said softly, smiling at her gently. Hize was glad she was one of the only people Zuko showed this side too, besides Iroh. She would have an overwhelming amount of jealousy if he gave everyone _that_ smile. You know, the one that made her stomach twist slightly and her heart rate quicken? Yeah, that one.

"Alright…" She said softly, letting him guide her to her bed. He pulled the covers back for her and she slid in, glancing back up at him. He gently pulled the covers up to her shoulders and leaned down, placing a gentle kiss upon her forehead before heading towards the door. He was about to close the door when he turned back to her already drowsy form.

"I love you, Hize." He whispered before closing the door behind him.


	11. The Storm

**A/N:** Woo! New chapter. Anyway; yeah, I agree that Hize/Zuko said 'I love you' too fast. But, they've been 'in love' since Zuko's banishment. Zuko's wanted to say it for a while, but he's never been ready too. He wasn't even fully ready when he said it last chapter. But do not fear, my readers! Nothing will change between them. He's still a jerk and Hize's still reluctantly faithful to him. =D

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Hize stretched as she stepped out onto the main deck of the cruiser Zuko commanded, her sleeves falling down to her elbows as her arms raised up. The wore the black body suit of the Dragon under her gown, but she always wore the suit underneath it. Her golden gaze traveled around the deck, spotting Iroh and Zuko on it as well. A breeze flowed by and she smiled, dropping her arms to her sides as she flitted over to Iroh.

"It's nice out, Iroh." She commented, stopping beside him. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and smiled. His gaze drifted over to his nephew, who was looking around with an extended monocular. Hize followed his gaze and allowed her cheeks to heat up slightly, turning away immediately. Iroh knew what happened last night, she knew just by that small gesture. As another breeze blew by, Iroh sniffed in a bit of air and sighed.

"There is a storm coming." He confirmed. "A big one." Hize raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"You're out of your mind, Uncle." Zuko verbalized her thoughts. "The weather's perfect, there's not a cloud in sight." He said, raising a hand in exasperation as he walked towards Hize and Zuko. It was that moment that Hize suddenly realized how short she really was, reaching only a few inches above Iroh and allowing Zuko to tower over her. She pouted, narrowing her eyes as she crossed her arms inside her sleeves and eyed Iroh skeptically.

"A storm is approaching from the north." He said, turning towards Zuko to speak directly to him. "I suggest we alter our course and head southwest." He folded his hands like Hize had her own. Zuko approached him, pointing forwards.

"We know the Avatar is heading northward, so we will do the same." Zuko was adamant. He didn't want to sway away from their direction, it was the quickest way to capture the Avatar.

"Prince Zuko, consider the safety of the crew." Iroh said, his expression serious. Zuko furrowed his brow.

"The safety of the crew doesn't matter!" Zuko yelled, turning his head when Lieutenant Jee came up from below deck. Hize groaned, knowing Jee would have a few choice words with the prince. Jee turned towards Zuko and frowned, raising a grayed eyebrow. Zuko approached the Lieutenant angrily.

"Finding the Avatar is far more important than any individual's safety." He said, glaring up into Jee's face as he peered up at the older man. Zuko turned and walked past the Lieutenant with his fists clenched, heading through the door to the main deck. Hize brought a hand up to her temple and rubbed it, feeling an incoming headache rising with Zuko's attitude. Iroh and Hize moved to stand beside Jee as he glared at the metal door that closed behind Zuko.

"He doesn't mean that." Iroh spoke, glancing up at Jee. "He's just all worked up." It sounded more like Iroh was trying to convince himself of that more than Jee. His sad gaze drifted towards the metal door as well. Jee said nothing as he turned away. Hize could feel the anger radiating off of him as he slipped below deck. She stood there for a second, waiting for Iroh to go inside. Once he was, she dashed over by Jee and grabbed his sleeve gently. He stopped his trek and glanced down at her, raising his eyebrow slightly.

"Lieutenant... I apologize for Prince Zuko's behavior. He did not mean what he said, you must understand that, yes?" She questioned, eyebrows furrowed with a saddened expression on her face. Jee shook his head and pulled his arm away.

"Lady Hize, he does not care for his crew, that much is obvious." He said, scowling. At the sight of her hurt expression, he smiled softly to the younger girl. "I just cannot fathom how someone of your sweetness could be so undeniably loyal to such a vicious person." He shook his head slightly, running a hand through his gray hair. He said nothing more as he slipped below deck. When Hize was alone, her fingers twitched.

"Sweet?" She asked out loud, shivering. "Ugh." Was the only thing out of her mouth as she slipped back inside onto the main level of the cruiser.

"Hize, are you alright? You look... unnerved." Iroh questioned when she closed the door behind her. She shivered slightly, causing Iroh to raise his eyebrow. She turned towards him slowly and furrowed her brows.

"Do you... think I'm sweet?" She asked, tilting her head to the side slightly as she pondered the thought in her head. Iroh laughed boisterously.

"Of course I do! Except on the battle field." He lowered his voice, walking away. "You're frightening when in battle." He whispered. Hize caught it and groaned. She lowered her head and slumped her shoulders, starting her trek to the steering room to play a game of Pai Sho with anyone in there.

"You alright, Hize?" A voice asked suddenly, popping up beside her. She turned her head swiftly, raising her left hand and thrusting it out at the sudden intruder. Ziva caught her wrist quickly and blinked, expressionless.

"Oh. Ziva. Hello." She said, attempting to pull her arm back to her. But Ziva's grip was tight around her wrist. He narrowed his eyes at her as he felt around her wrist with his free hand. He glanced at her and pulled up her sleeve, eying the Sai was that strapped to her forearm. He shook his head in disbelief.

"You use these? I thought you just collected them..." He said, noting the slight dullness that the blades are taking one, giving away the fact that they've been used. Hize scowled and snatched her wrist back to her, cradling it to her chest.

"I'm not just some weak-willed girl, Ziva." She spat, offended by his surprise. She wasn't weak, he should know that. He shook his head, raising his hands.

"I never thought you were weak, Hize. I just... When have you used them- Wait." He grabbed her wrist again and pulled her roughly towards him. She cried out as she felt pain in her shoulder from the sudden tug. He jerked the sleeve up to her shoulder and studied it; his eyes immediately landing on the small lined scratches that were on her elbow and bicep. He studied the strapping around the Sai and placed her hand in his as he leaned down to get a closer look. He felt something as he placed her hand in his and turned it over. The sleeve of the body suit went up and covered her palm, as well as her full middle finger. But on the palm was another strap, one that was loose to show that it's been used plenty of times. As he studied the strap he pulled back suddenly.

The hand part of the body suit, the placement of both straps, the hair, the eyes, the height... Ziva suddenly pulled his hand to his side and took a step back. "No way..." He breathed out. Hize's eyebrows rose.

"What?" She asked clueless as to why he seemed so... appalled. She took a step towards him and he retreated back one as well. His eyes were wide. "Ziva?" He shook his head.

"No, it's nothing." He said harshly, turning away from her. She clenched her fist.

"Tell me, Ziva." She said, causing him to turn towards her. He frowned.

"You should've told me." He said softly, looking away from her. "I've been your friend for three years. But you never mentioned that... that you were the White Dragon." He whispered the last part softly. Hize pulled her head back in surprise.

"How-"

"The one thing good about my fighting abilities is my observation. It's the only thing that got me this far. That's why I was sent to be with you and Zuko; I'm useless in the army. You're hair and eyes are the same. Same height. It's the body suit that gave it away." He leaned against the wall and closed his golden eyes. "You have tears on the elbow where the tonfa is repeatedly rubbing against." Hize unconsciously reached over and rubbed her elbow, almost feeling her calloused flesh through her sleeves.

They stood in silence for several minutes, ignoring the people that walked past them every now and then. Hize said nothing to Prince Zuko as he walked past the two and back out onto the deck. But when the door closed, Hize snapped her gaze to Ziva and scowled.

"You will _not_ speak of this, understand?" She said, pointing at him as a brief fit of fury washed over her. "I'll be damned if I lose everything because you know the truth." She cursed, pulling back and crossing her arms. Ziva smiled, twitching an eyebrow up.

"Do you trust me so little, Hize? You're the future Crown Princess of the Fire Nation; I must be loyal to you." He said, shaking his head softly. Hize's gaze softened.

"But do you wish to?" She questioned, eyes slowly narrowing as she assumed her answer would be negative.

"Of course. You're my friend. I was only upset because you decided to skim over such important information..." He said, sighing softly. He reached his right hand towards her, pinky up in the air childishly. "No more secrets?" He asked, looking at the younger girl hopefully. She laughed softly at his behavior and grasped his pinky within her own.

"No more secrets." She confirmed, both making a silent promise to their friendship. He pulled away and glanced down the hall.

"I'm supposed to be in the boiler room helping out with something. I'll see you later." He smiled and turned, walking down the hall.

Hize stood there for a few minutes, breathing evenly. At least that was one person she didn't have to worry about when time came around to openly reveal the identity of the White Dragon. She thought to herself as she turned and exited the cruiser, wanting some of that nice fresh air that was outside.

She was greeted by storm clouds hovering over them. Her eyebrows rose sharply. Iroh was right! How did he know just by smelling the air? She'd need to learn that trick. Her head turned sharply to the left as she heard Jee yelling at Zuko.

"You don't care about anyone but yourself!" He spoke, his hands out to his sides in anger. "Then again, what should I expect from a spoiled Prince?" He asked, scowling. Hize could tell by Zuko's tense posture that he was not happy at all. Hize quickly moved over by Iroh, glancing down at him with a questioning gaze. He shook his head at her.

Suddenly, Zuko turned. He had his left arm extended out, palm facing upwards. His right arm was folded across his chest, hand clenched into a fist to rest against the side of his elbow. Hize recognized that stance. Iroh was just as worried beside her. "Easy now..." He breathed out as Jee slowly moved into the same stance. Hize moved forward just as Zuko did. Jee followed and their metal bracer's connected at the wrist. They stood in that position as Iroh walked over, eying the steam flowing out of Zuko's palm. Their wrists began to shake as they fought for dominance quietly.

"Enough!" Iroh yelled, shoving them away from one another. Both men glanced down at the short, retired General. "We are all a bit tired from being at sea for so long." He said, trying to be the peacemaker. "I'm sure after a bowl of noodles, everyone will feel much better." He said, sending them both a subtle grin. Hize knew right then that he was implying he was hungry.

Zuko and Jee stared at one another for another moment before Jee turned away from him and walked off. Zuko turned around. "I don't need your help keeping order on my ship." Zuko said, clenching his fists once again. Iroh approached him from behind. Iroh placed his hand on his nephew's shoulder, but he pulled away and walked towards the front of the ship.

Hize reached over and placed her hand on Iroh's arm. He glanced up at her with a deeply saddened expression on his face. He opened his mouth to say something to the girl, but only shook his head and closed his eyes.

"I know, Iroh." She whispered to him, sighing and looking down at the deck of the ship. He glanced back up at her.

"Do you think you could talk to him?" He asked, looking at her through furrowed brows. Hize smiled softly and shook her head.

"I can't coax him along like a child. He has to learn things on his own. Were you not the one who told me that before?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at him. He laughed softly.

"I suppose you are right... Perhaps you would like to join me for a walk through the ship?" He asked, offering the arm she still had a hold of.

"But of course, General Iroh." She said, tightening her grip as they turned to walk back inside. He glanced up at with a raised eyebrow.

"Retired general." He chimed in, causing Hize to giggle softly as they left the prince to brood on his own.

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"I'm sick of taking his orders!" Hize turned as she heard the sound of Jee's voice resounding in a hollow room. "I'm tired of chasing his Avatar! I mean, who does Zuko think he is?" Jee asked, complaining to a few of the workers down in the boiling room. Iroh, who had also heard the commotion, walked into the room and began to speak.

"Do you really want to know?" He asked, upset at the way Jee was talking to underhandedly about his nephew. Jee stood, along with a few of the workers.

"General Iroh... Lady Hize." Jee said, his eyes drifting away before returning back to the two people standing at the top of the stairs. Hize still had her arms wrapped around his own, and her grip had become almost painful as her anger increased slightly. Jee attempted to explain. "We were just-" Iroh raised his hand to cut him off, softly shaking Hize off of his arm. She released him immediately and stood starkly.

"It's okay... May I join you?" He asked, intent on explaining the complex situation to Zuko's subordinates. Jee looked surprised.

"Of course, sir." Iroh descended the stairs and took a seat on the vacant barrel that was down around a fire for people to sit on. Hize said nothing as she turned from the group and crossed her arms, leaning against the railing of the stairs as she opted to silently sit this one out. She had to live through the experience he was going to speak of, she didn't want to have to speak of it.

When Iroh sat down, he stroked his goatee. "Try to understand... My nephew is a complicated young man. He has been through much." He said as Hize slipped into her memories; remembering everything from that day.

_Hize sighed as she followed behind the thirteen-year-old Prince Zuko. He was heading towards the Fire Lords war chamber, hoping to finally get in now that he was 'older and more mature', as he so put it. She tried to tell him it was a bad idea, but he wouldn't listen to her. He was determined to earn his father's love, and if he couldn't have his love, he demanded his respect._

_Following him down the hall was hard to do, as she wasn't in her White Dragon garb. She stood in her regular gowns, surprisingly rebellious for the future Princess. She did not wear the Fire Nation colors; but opted for a lavender tunic that reached to her knees, tied around the waist by a black sash. Under the tunic was a long-sleeved floor-length gown that trailed behind her as she slowly followed after the rather eager Prince._

_His hopes were shattered as the two guards blocked the door, not allowing him to pass. Zuko lost all immaturity and almost pouted._

"_Let me in!" He demanded. Hize turned her head as she saw Iroh nearing._

_"Prince Zuko, what's wrong?" He asked, placing his hands on Zuko's shoulders and leading him away from the guards._

_"I want to go in to the war chamber, but the guards won't let me pass." He said, pointing an accusing thumb at the guards blocking the way._

"_You aren't missing anything, trust me." He led Zuko away a few feet before stopping to speak again. Hize remained where she was, staring at the guards with her head tilted to the side. "These meetings are dreadfully boring." Iroh said, sounding absolutely truthful. But Zuko had a just as truthful answer._

"_If I'm going to rule this nation some day, don't you think I need to start learning as much as I can?" He asked, and Hize could almost hear the hopeful smile. Iroh peered down at him, the gears turning rapidly in his head._

"_Very well... But you must promise not to speak. These old folks are a bit sensitive, you know?" Zuko was excited, he bowed to his Uncle deeply._

"_Thank you, Uncle!" He said, placing a hand on Zuko's shoulder and guiding him into the room. Hize watched them pass and made no attempt to following them. She moved to the side of the guards and leaned against the wall, her hands folded in front of her as she waited for Zuko to exit. Several others that passed by gave her hard looks, openly disapproving of her attire. _

_No one was particularly happy with her lack of Fire Nation dress; but Fire Lord Ozai chose Hize as Zuko's bride not for her attire. He choose her because she was the White Dragon; she could assassinate any person he so desired. And with her taking up the position as his future daughter-in-law, he had full command of her. He knew perfectly well that Hize was only dedicated to Zuko; and would not listen to him if he used his power as the Fire Lord to his advantage. She cared less about Ozai's status. She cared for Zuko; her mission and her crush. All Ozai had to do was tell her that the only way he'll continue this betrothal is if she does jobs for him. And ever since they've been betrothed, she's killed more than she'd like; all for the sake of still being with Zuko._

_Hize was brought out of her reverie by the sound of yelling coming from inside the chamber. She moved away from the wall and approached the door. The guards stopped her from going in she grunted as they pushed her back._

"_My fiancé's in there!" She said defiantly, moving forward again. They pushed her back again, more roughly than the last. _

Hize snapped back into thoughts as she felt something wet on her cheek. She reached her hand up and wiped a tear away. The thought of that night brings up the Agni Kai that followed; and the moment that changed her life.

"Zuko was right... but it was not his place to speak out." The present-time Iroh spoke, glancing from person to person as he explained the story. "And there were dire consequences." He said, continuing the story.

"After Zuko's outburst in the meeting, the Fire Lord became very angry with him. He said that Zuko's challenge of the General was an act of complete disrespect. And there was only one way to resolve this."

"Agni Kai..." Jee said, moving his eyes towards Iroh and away from the fire in front of all of them. "A fire duel..."

"That's right..." Iroh's voice was soft as he spoke, no longer holding the usual humor. "Zuko looked upon the old general that he had insulted and declared that he was not afraid. But Zuko misunderstood. When he turned to face his opponent, he was surprised to see it was not the general. Zuko had spoken out against the general's plan, but by doing so in the Fire Lord's war room... It was the Fire Lord whom he had disrespected. Zuko would have to duel his own father."

"When Prince Zuko saw that it was his father that had come to duel him, he begged for mercy."

_Hize clenched her fists tightly as she glared down at the scene in front of her. Prince Zuko was to duel and Angi Kai with his own father._

"_Please, father. I only had the Fire Nation's best interest at heart. I'm sorry I spoke out of turn." He pleaded. Hize, who unfortunately sat in the front row, looked away from the scene. She couldn't stand to see Zuko in such a weak state. It was too much._

"_You will fight for your honor!" Ozai demanded, approaching his son. Zuko dropped to his knees and into a low bow._

"_I meant you no disrespect! I am your loyal son!" His pleads continued. But Ozai was unrelenting._

"_Rise and fight, Prince Zuko!" _

"_I won't fight you." Zuko admitted softly, lowing his head. Ozai stopped in front of his son, staring down at him. _

"_You **will** learn respect." He growled out. "And suffering will be your teacher!" Zuko looked up at his father, tears running down his face. Hize hissed as she felt her nails bit into her skin and the blood trickle down her palm. The man next to her looked at her with worry, but smirked when he realize it was Hize; forced in the front row to watch her betrothed be brutally defeated by his own father. The man turned away immediately._

_Hize's breathing picked up as Ozai drew his hand back. Just as Zuko began his scream, Hize's own scream picked up and she turned away, putting her hands over her ears to block out Zuko's scream of pain. She sunk to her knee's, hidden by the concrete railing that blocked the arena from view._

"I looked away..." Iroh admitted. Hize let out a soft sigh as she silently moved down the stairs. Jee spoke.

"I always thought... that Prince Zuko was in a training accident." He said, eyes drifting to the ground.

"It was no accident." Iroh spoke, raising his head. He met Hize's troubled gaze and his eyes softened. "After the duel, the Fire Lord said that by refusing to fight, Zuko had shown shameful weakness... As punishment, he was banished. And sent to capture the Avatar; only then could he return with his honor."

"So that's why he's so obsessed." Jee confirmed, closing his eyes in sympathy as he went over the situation again and again in his mind. "Capturing the Avatar is the only chance he has of things returning to normal."

"Things will never return to normal." Iroh said, his gaze back on Hize. His change in gaze caused the other men in the room to look over at her, surprised to see her look so serious, opposed to her normally jovial self.

"But the important thing is that the Avatar gives Zuko hope." Hize stopped walking once she reached Iroh's back, standing behind him with her arms folded within her sleeves. Jee glanced up at her and opened his mouth to ask a question, but never got it out as the ship shook violently. Lightening had struck the ship. Iroh and Hize shared a serious gaze before he was standing.

Everyone rushed out on deck and Hize was mildly surprised to see Zuko already out on deck, looking around. Ziva was there as well, his helmet off and his black hair sticking to his face. The rain was heavy and sharp on Hize's body, the waves violently rocking them around. She felt nauseas as she gripped her stomach, not too pleased with the violent rocking.

"Where were we hit?" Zuko yelled above the rain. Jee answered.

"I don't know!"

"Look!" Iroh yelled, pointing upwards. Hize couldn't follow his gaze, she could barely stand with the dizziness that overwhelmed her.

"The helmsman!" She heard Zuko yell. That caused her to look up, seeing the helmsman dangling over the deck. His hand was gripping railing that had fallen over. Zuko was quick to act, suddenly shooting up the ladder that led to the helmsman quarters. Jee was right behind him. Hize took a few steps forward and placed a hand to her stomach.

"Be careful!" She yelled up to them, but groaned when her head pounded. Iroh tensed and looked around, almost preparing for something. Then, Hize almost had the wind knocked out of her. Iroh suddenly moved his body, lightening falling down from the sky and striking him. He moved his body to the right and redirected the lightening to the ocean. She sucked in a breath of awe as she stared at the rather crispy Iroh.

She ran over to him, ignoring her ill feeling. "That was... AWESOME!" She screamed, throwing her arms around him. She hissed viciously and pulled back, his body steaming. A sudden yell caused her to look up. The helmsman had lost his grip and started to fall. But Zuko reached out and grabbed his wrist in just enough time. He gently guided him to Jee, who grabbed the mans sides and pulled him to the ladder. Hize didn't miss the smile the Jee and Zuko shared with one another.

Hize smiled to herself as she watched Zuko and Jee descend the ladder. Once they were all on safe ground, she breathed out a sigh of relieve. She immediately went to Zuko and was about to grab his arm when he spoke.

"The Avatar!" He said. All eyes went to the sky and landed on the large flying bison that was in the air. Hize pulled her hand back to her side, almost nervous about what would happen.

"What do you want to do, Sir?" Jee asked, completely understanding Zuko's complex position. Zuko's body seemed to reluctantly relax.

"Let him go. We need to get this ship to safety." He commanded, eyes on the Avatar. Hize smiled outwardly, absolutely proud of his decision.

"Then we must head directly into the eye of the storm." Iroh commanded to the crew behind him before shooting Zuko a pleased look. The crew waited patiently for a few moments before suddenly, the rain stopped. They were in a small section of clear skies; surrounded on all sides by the dark, menacing clouds waiting to consume them.

Hize let out a breath, happy to be back in smooth waters. She stumbled over to the edge of the ship and leaned her head over, not sure if she would puke or not. Hize let out a surprised cry and fell back onto the deck as a flying bison suddenly exploded out of the water. Her eyes followed it in awe.

It was then that she realize the Avatar's gaze was directly on Zuko, Zuko's gaze directly on the Avatar. Hize smiled, happy that Zuko was thinking of the safety of the crew. She began to get up, until a tanned hand entered her vision. She followed it up to Jee, who was holding his hand to help her up. She took it gently, and he easily pulled her up. He glanced over at Zuko, who was towards the back of the ship. They were a good distance away, decent enough for Jee to ask his question.

"Why do you remain so loyal to him?" He questioned softly, looking into Hize's golden eyes intently. She was taken aback by the fire in them; he wanted to know this answer, and desperately.

"I knew him before the Agni Kai." She said, pulling her hand back to her side gently. "I will always remember the way he used to be. I am still loyal because I'm hopeful he'll return to his old self, the one that I came to love." She explained, smiling at the older Lieutenant. She was actually quite fond of him, he often coursed her through training sessions. Though, she pretended to be weak as not to reveal her identity as the White Dragon to him.

"May I ask another question, Lady Hize?" He asked, still searching her eyes.

"Of course, Lieutenant." She said, nodding her head. His eyebrows furrowed.

"Why were you banished as well?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. She gave a short, vicious laugh.

"Well, I was banished the same day as Zuko-

_Hize cowered behind the wall even after the Agni Kai. She cowered even after everyone filed out. And she cowered even after Iroh came over to her. Zuko had made his way to the same wall she was at, but rested on the opposite side. They were directly behind one another, she could tell by his sobs and he could tell by her sobs. Iroh stood next to Hize before moving over the wall and crouching beside Zuko._

_Hize slowly stood, not bothering to wipe her tears away. She lifted her body on top of the wall and fell over, roughly landing on her side next to the now sitting Iroh. Zuko clutched his face, blood spilling out and tears streaming down his face. Hize's lip quivered. He heard her let out a sob and his golden eye opened. At the sight of her horrified face, he immediately closed it and turned his head away from her, hoping she would forgive him for being so hideous._

_Her fingers touched his good cheek gingerly, turning his head back to her. She was directly in front of him now, lip shaking and eyes pouring salty tears. The injured prince felt his own lip quiver as he looked at her. She leaned forward and gently placed her forhead against his._

"_Zuko..." She whispered. He let out a loud sob, understanding suddenly that she was upset by his pain, not because he was ugly. He lowered his head to his shoulder, grateful that Hize and Iroh were there to comfort him in this time of dire need. Hize shivered slightly as she felt his warm blood leak through her tunic and onto her skin. It was staining the white fabric red. She tenderly wrapped her arm around him and placed it on his back. She could feel Iroh's hand upon his shoulder._

_Zuko's hand clutched at her skirt, bunching the fabric up as he tried to push the pain aside. Bu there was far too much pain. Physical, mental, and emotional. He was broken; completely and utterly broken. Suddenly, rage took over Hize as she clenched her fist on his back._

"_I will kill him, Zuko." She whispered to him. He pulled back quickly, looking at her with horror on his face._

_"No! Don't!" He pleaded with her. Her eyes widened slightly and her hands dropped to her side._

"_But he hurt you... So badly. I will not stand for this. I am your ward; assigned to protect you. I have failed, Zuko. I will not stand for failure." She whispered to him. He shook his head softly._

_"Hize... Not right now..." His command kept her silent, but a new voice interrupted her thoughts._

"_You dare plan on murdering the Fire Lord? What conspiracy!" It was a voice Hize hated for all the years she'd known Zuko. The voice of Azula, his little sister. Hize knew the girl must be pleased, as it was common knowledge that Azula despised her brother._

"_Did you hear that, Father? She was going to kill you." Hize tilted her head slightly and saw both Azula and Ozai standing there, Azula smug and Ozai emotionless._

_"I heard, Azula." His tone made her shut up. His gaze was on Zuko, not Hize. Hize turned back to Zuko. "Zuko. You must learn the meaning of honor. I will give you a task that will restore all of your honor to you, but you must complete it with absolute success." Zuko looked up at his father, hopeful. It looked wrong to Hize, Zuko looking up at the man who gave him the wound he was currently cradling in his hand... the one that was still oozing blood._

"_You must capture the Avatar." He ordered, glaring at his son. Zuko looked alarmed._

"_But the Avatar abandoned the Nations a hundred years ago!" Zuko said, but was silenced by the look on Ozai's face._

"_You will not be permitted to return until you capture the Avatar. That is final." He said, then his gaze turned to Hize. She could feel it on the back of her neck._

"_And Hize. I admit, it will be a shame not to have you at my immediate disposal. But punishment is deserved after planning your Fire Lord's death." Hize didn't move, only clenched her fists. "Look at me." He commanded, wanting to look her in the eyes as he delivered the blow. She didn't move an inch. He growled before thrusting his hand back._

"_Have it your way!" His patience left him as he thrust his hand forward, a flame shooting towards the girl. Iroh moved to push her away, but Ozai was too close and too fast. Her blood-curling scream rippled through the arena as she felt immediate burning on her back. She felt the flames dancing in delicate patterns as they ate away at her flesh. She felt the heat and the anger behind those burns. Fire Lord Ozai was a impatient man who did not handle disrespect and disloyalty well. And this scar would be the testament to those flaws._

"I was banished that day." Hize finished, looking up at Jee. His eyebrows were furrowed and he looked appalled.

"All this time... you've been carrying such a burden on your back? Such pain?" He questioned. She nodded softly.

"Does it... still hurt?" He asked. She laughed.

"All the time. As does Zuko's, I'm sure. Sometimes it's not physical pain. It's mental. Pain of knowing that I was a failure..." She whispered, looking away from Jee. He stared at her for a moment before recognizing her expression. She wanted to be alone. He bowed to her before moving around her swiftly, heading back inside. Only when she heard the door close did she allow the tears to slip from her eyes.


	12. The Blue Spirit

Hize tilted her head to the side as she watched the game that was in progress before her. Iroh reached his hand forward and moved a piece four spaces. She hissed and bent down to his head, right hand cupped around her lips.

"Iroh, be careful of the tile to the right. If you don't move after his next turn, you'll lose." She said softly into his ear. Iroh's eyes widened, as he just noticed the piece she spoke about. He let out a low chuckle as a glint crossed his eyes. Hize smiled and brought the steamed cup of ginger root tea to her lips. She smiled as she felt the warmth run down her throat.

It was thanks to that ginger root tea that she has yet to have a cold in her life. Ginger root tea was known to keep colds away and keep one healthy. And it sure worked for Hize. Her eyes drifted to Prince Zuko and Lieutenant Jee, who had gotten along quite well since their last fight. They were both hunched over the map that was placed in the steering room everyone was crowded into. The steering room was the hang-out room; it was where the Pai Sho games took place.

"We haven't been able to pick up the Avatar's trail since the storm... but if we continue heading northeast-" Jee stopped his speech when a huge shadow overcame the steering room. There was another ship beside them. Hize's gaze was directed out the window and on the ship and immediately confirmed it was a Fire Nation vessel. She took one more sip of her tea before she placed it on the edge of the Pai Sho board. She turned from the board and began to exit the room to go up to the deck.

"What do they want?" Zuko asked, a scowl on his pale face. Iroh lifted an eyebrow as he watched the ship pass slowly. Then he rubbed his hands together with excitement.

"Perhaps a sporting game of Pai Sho!" He said, voice upbeat as usual.

"I doubt they're here for Pai Sho, General Iroh." Hize chimed, gaze directed towards him as she stopped in the doorway. Zuko's golden orbs traveled to her, connected with her own. She nodded her head to the side to indicate that she could hear them as they boarded the ship.

"They are coming down here to us." She said as a sigh escaped her lips. She made her way back to the Pai Sho table and picked up her ginger root tea. She flitted over to the side of the room and leaned against the wall there. She hoped to stay out of this situation. She wasn't fond of many people within the Fire Nation, and she felt this was just another person she didn't trust.

Her allowed her eyes to narrow as two guards and a Lieutenant from the ship beside them marched into the room. Hize made a mental note about how similar all of the Fire Nation guards really did look. Her eyebrow twitched upwards as the Lieutenant jerked open a scroll in front of Prince Zuko, who had his arms crossed over his chest. Hize knew immediately that he was not pleased.

"The hunt for the Avatar has been given prime importance. All information regarding the Avatar must be reported directly to Admiral Zhao." Hize pulled her head back sharply. _'Admiral?'_ She questioned in her head, a scowl placed on her face. Her grip tightened on the cup she held, her knuckles turned white.

"Zhao has been promoted?" Iroh questioned, eyes focused on his game. "Well, good for him!" He moved his piece and received skeptical looks from those that watched for a second before his opponent slapped a hand to his head, defeated.

"I've got nothing to report to Zhao." Zuko said with a soft growl. He had his arms crossed over his chest and his gaze was on the ground. "Now get off my ship." He ordered, a glare on his face. "And let us pass."

"Admiral Zhao is not allowing ships in or out of this area." The Lieutenant informed the prince, who was most certainly displeased with this information. Hize was as well. Her grip on the cup became so tight that it shattered in her hand. All eyes moved to her, her jaw clenched in anger and hot ginger root tea dropped from her hand to the floor steadily. The foreign Lieutenant raised his eyebrow at her and narrowed his eyes.

"I wanted to see my mother at the Pohuai Stronghold." She said softly, a dark glare upon her face as she glowered at the Lieutenant. The Lieutenant let out a noticeable shiver at the dark gaze.

"Impossible. The only female at the Pohuai Stronghold is Former Commander Zizan. And her daughter was banished from the Fire Nation three years ago." The Lieutenant frowned at her. Hize rolled her eyes and flicked her hand to the side, the tea splattered against the wall.

"And you're on the ship of Prince Zuko; banished three years ago. Engaged to Zizan's 'banished daughter'." Her voice was monotone as she spoke. She was aware they were close to the area her mother took her vacations. And it's the time of year for her vacation. After three years of banishment, Hize wanted to make amends with her mother.

The Lieutenant thought for a moment before he spoke. "I can take you with us to see your mother, if you so desire. I'm sure Admiral Zhao wouldn't mind seeing you as well." If that wasn't a hint to something, Hize didn't know what was. She shuddered softly.

"Off my ship!" Zuko yelled, his arm thrust to the side in anger. The guards turned and left the room silently.

"Excellent! I take the pot!" Iroh cried out, his arms wrapped around the coins that rested upon the Pai Sho board. He pulled them to him and cuddled into the money. He grinned at his friends. "But you're all improving! I'm certain you will win if we play again." He suggested, a smirk on his face.

Zuko turned away from them as he glared out the window. Hize moved around the older gentlemen and stood beside him. He glanced over at her.

"Do you really wish to see your mother?" He asked quietly. She raised her gaze to him, a short laugh escaped.

"I'm not sure... I wanted to... make amends with her." She admitted to him softly. He sighed.

"I can... get you in." He said, gaze away from her immediately. She shook her head.

"No. This is something you have to do yourself Zuko." She was aware of what he wanted to do. He wanted to be the Blue Spirit; a persona that Zuko took on a few times before. Hize didn't want to brag, but she was aware that the White Dragon was his inspiration, as well as his teacher. Zuko turned suddenly, he said nothing more as he exited the room.

Hize shared a glance with Iroh, a silent conversation with their eyes. Hize sighed, defeated by Iroh. She shuffled her feet and exited the room as well, she just hoped Zuko wouldn't get frustrated with her.

[Page Break]

Hize crouched on the ground, her hands on her knees. Her breath came in short bursts, sweat dripped from her brow. She could feel the wetness on her back, sweat that stuck to to the back of her tunic. Zuko glowered at her, obviously not done. Suddenly, he jumped forward, fist raised. She reacted immediately with a slide to the left and brought her leg out and under to trip him up. He placed his palm on the ships deck and flipped over her leg. He pivoted his body while in the air and landed on his feet. He slid his foot back and raised his hands in a defensive position.

Hize turned slowly, sliding her own right foot back and bending her knees. She kept her right arm pulled back towards her to rest by her side, but still bent upward at the elbow. Her left hand was extended, ready to block any oncoming attack. Her fingers were curled slightly in a claw-like position. She took in a deep breath and breathed out gently, steam escaping her nostrils. Zuko took that as an offensive gesture and brought his right arm back before he punched a wave of fire at Hize.

Her eyes widened and she swiftly rolled to the side. She was on the ground on her stomach, a glare in her eyes. She brought herself to her knees, unable to breath properly. She sat there for a minute to steady her breathing, but it was too long for Zuko.

He let out a frustrated noise before he began to kick and punch flames into the air, directed away from the girl as she rested. He stopped with his back to her as footsteps were heard, then a voice.

"Is everything okay? It's been almost an hour and you haven't given the men an order?" Iroh's voice had broke the silence. Zuko tilted his head back to look at his uncle, who stood a few feet behind Hize.

"I don't care what they do!" He turned his head forward sharply, anger coursing through him.

"Don't give up hope yet. You can still find the Avatar before Zhao." Iroh confirmed Hize's thoughts.

"How, Uncle?" He cried as he turned towards his dear Uncle. His expression was one Hize would never forget; one of pure helplessness. He had given up. "With Zhao's resources, it's just a matter of time before he captures the Avatar!" He turned from his two onlookers and looked out to the sea as they floated. His voice was soft, and deeply wounded, but Hize could hear him.

"My honor... My throne... My country... I'm about to lose them all." He said, shoulders slumped. His gaze drifted to the deck and he let out a very soft sigh. In that moment, Hize was reminded exactly why she still helped Zuko. She wanted him to have his honor, to have his country. He deserved to rule the Fire Nation, and Hize was positive he would be a better ruler than Ozai.

Iroh turned away from his nephew, his head shook as he walked away. He was just as sad as Hize was to see his nephew so devastated. Hize struggled to stand, her breathing had almost returned to normal. She moved towards Zuko quietly and placed a gentle hand on his forearm. He glanced over at her, his gaze hard. His arm slid out of her grasp before warmth flooded through her. His fingers were locked around her own as he held her hand. He simply stared out to see as Hize's silence comforted him.

Prince Zuko was aware that Hize was there for him. He was aware that she would do anything for him. He was aware that she was only loyal to the Fire Nation because she was loyal to him. And he was aware that he loved every minute of it; he loved having one subject who refused to report to anyone other than himself.

A gentle breeze brushed Hize's hair to the side. She reached up and tucked it behind her ear before she turned her body towards him. She didn't let go of his hand as she leaned against the metal railing that was directly in front of Zuko. It was an awkward position for their arms, but neither made a move to let go of the other.

"Zuko... I want you to be careful tonight." She whispered, gaze lowering. He moved closer to her, her hand no longer in his grasp. He stopped when his body was a few inches away from hers. She could feel the heat radiating from his body. It warmed her up in the cool ocean air. His gaze drifted from her eyes to over her shoulder.

"I will." His voice was just as soft as hers. It felt as though this was a secret, the way they cared for each other was rarely seen on the ship. To Hize, it almost felt as if they were sneaking around about it. She bit her lip as she looked up at him.

Zuko noticed her movement and glanced down. She looked incredibly serious. His eyes softened and he placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll be fine." He whispered as he slid his arm around her and brought her to him. The hug was gentle and very short, as he pulled back after a few seconds. She sighed softly.

"Let me help with something, just so I can feel more assured." She offered with a glance up at him. He nodded for her to continue. As she pushed away from the edge of the ship, Zuko moved to the side to let her pass.

"The Yu Yan Archers are at the Pohuai Stronghold. They're very skilled." She said as she began to pace back and forth, left arm crossed under her breasts and her right arms' elbow rested on her hand. Her right hand was making odd gestures as she spoke, something she did often when she thought.

"I don't think Zhao would want to kill someone who is going to steal his Avatar. He's the kind of man where he'd want revenge. He would want to torture you, weaken you mentally before finishing you off. He's too much of a sadist to finish it quickly." She breathed out as she narrowed her eyes in thought. "He'll want to knock you out." She glanced over at him.

Zuko was in the same position she had been in earlier during their hug; body propped against the railing. His arms were crossed over his chest and he watched her intently, she knew he was listening to her carefully.

"The best ways to knock you out would be the head, neck, or stomach." She said as she glanced at each spot on his body when she said it. "The best way to keep your stomach from being hit is to stay away from close combat. You're a tank; you go directly into the heart of battle." Her hand was now on her head as she scratched it casually to focus her thoughts.

"All I have to say about the stomach is to use your broadswords to keep enemies off of you." She nodded at him. "The neck... Don't turn your back on an enemy. Make sure they're down before you do. I don't want you to end up being knocked unconscious because some fool pretended to be down for the count." Zuko narrowed his eyes at that. He felt insulted that she would think he would actually _let_ an enemy behind him. She laughed his anger off easily.

"As for the head..." She turned to him fully and stopped her pacing. "Don't wear a porcelain mask." She said, eyes narrowed. "It will break if one of the Yu Yan archers hit it. Wear a metal one. Paint it to look porcelain. But do _not_ wear a porcelain mask." She said, fists clenched as she narrowed her eyes at him. "Yes, if you get hit you will be knocked out. But if it's porcelain, you will die." She was silent as Zuko approached her. He stopped in front of her and placed both of his hands on her shoulders.

"I understand. But trust me, I will be fine." He lowered his head and placed his lips gently on her forehead. She watched him warily as he turned from her, but felt calm wash over her when he glanced back at her and nodded his head gently. She allowed a small smirk to cross her face. She almost felt sorry for the Fire Nation soldier he would encounter tonight.

[Page Break]

Hize's body began to lean to the side as she sat beside Iroh, who was playing the Tsungi Horn. Her eyes drifted back and forth from the below-deck staircase to the same creepy monkey statue that she had pleaded with Iroh not to get a few weeks ago. Iroh glanced down at her and stopped his playing.

"Perhaps you should get some rest, Hize. I'm sure he will return soon." Iroh patted the girls head softly. She shook her head in response. "He will be upset when he finds out you waited all night for him to return. And he will be even more upset when he realizes you missed Music Night as well." Iroh's eyes were narrowed slightly at her, which was an indication that he was sad she missed Music Night.

"Iroh..." Her voice was cracked with fatigue. "I'm not going to sleep until I know he's safe." He merely nodded and began to play the horn again. Hize let out a deep sigh as she leaned back against the railing of the ship. Suddenly, she jolted forward and stood as she heard the sound Zuko's exploration ship being reeled in. Her eyes brightened when she saw Zuko walk up above deck. Iroh stopped playing the Tsungi Horn and eyed him.

"Where have you been, Prince Zuko?" His eyes followed the banished Prince as he walked by the two of them. Hize's eyes did the same. Hize noticed that his shoulder were slumped slightly, and his eyes seemed to be half-lidded in either fatigue or pain.

"You missed Music Night." Hize said bluntly. Iroh glared at her. "So did you." He muttered. She slapped his shoulder hard and he let out a simple 'ow'.

"Lieutenant Jee sang a stirring love song." Iroh emphasized the 'stirring' as he watched his nephew continue by him. Hize began to followed him casually.

"I'm going to bed. No disturbances." He ordered as he entered the ship. Hize was hot on his heels. There was silence for only a few moments before Hize spoke. She noticed how he rubbed his head every now and then.

"Told you the metal mask was a good idea." She chided as she sent him a soft smile. Zuko sent her a fierce glare. She stopped her trek. He ignored her and continued to walk towards his room. She twitched slightly.

"I'll... see you when you wake up, then." She slumped her shoulders and continued to her own room. At least she could sleep now that she knew Zuko was safe. She would question Zuko about what happened later on when both of them would be less irritable.

**Author's Note:** Well, this chapter was a fun one to do. I tried to keep my verb tense as past tense, so sorry if it's different from the others. I originally planned for Hize to stalk the Blue Spirit and look out for him; but I didn't want this chapter to revolve all around Hize. I wanted Zuko to be able to be on his own for once.

Anyway, I need everyone's opinion. Since there are three Books in the series; all with about twenty episodes/chapters... I was thinking about separating my fanfiction into three stories; one focusing on each Book. Considering each Book is going to be an absolutely different setting/goal for Zuko, I thought this would be better than suddenly jumping settings and plots repeatedly. What do you guys think?


	13. Meditation

**A/N:** Sorry if this chapter appears shorter than the rest.

[Page Break]

A soft sigh escaped Hize's lips as she stared at herself in the mirror above her vanity. Her hair was a mess, undone from their normal bun and braids. It was wavy from the braids they were always in, and reached to her lower back. Despite not being fond of any of the Fire Nation's traditions, Hize practiced the no-longer active tradition of not cutting your hair if you were female. That tradition had long since past, but Hize kept to it.

Hize ignored the knock at her door as she grabbed the brush from her vanity. Her eyes turned only slightly as her door opened, her gaze now on the man who walked in. Her eyebrow twitched upwards as she brushed through her hair gently.

"May I help you, Prince Zuko?" She asked, eyes connected with his through her mirror as he stopped behind her. He had no set expression on his face, and had his arms crossed over his chest.

Nothing was said from the prince as he just watched her as she brushed through her long black hair. Hize hadn't spoken to him since yesterday morning, when he had arrived from the Pohuai Stronghold. Both of them had been asleep the entire time, until now. Hize watched him curiously as he seemed to sway from one foot to the other.

With a gentle pull through her hair with the brush, she let out a sigh and placed the brush on the metal vanity. "Just spit it out, Zuko." She said firmly, getting annoyed with his nervous silence. He glared at her before he crossed his arms over his chest. He let out a breath and reached for her brush. Her eyebrow twitched upward, a skeptical look on her face.

"I had the Avatar." He whispered as he grabbed a chunk of her hair and slowly began to brush through it. Hize closed her eyes immediately. Zuko hadn't brushed her hair since they were banished; it felt nice. She reopened her eyes to stare into his own.

"You _had_ the Avatar?" She asked as she leaned back into his warm hands, which no longer held the brush. His hands were buried in her hair to separate it into two sections that he'll work into her normal hairstyle. He tugged on her hair suddenly. She hissed and glared at him thought the mirror.

"Zhao had him at the Pohuai Stronghold. I helped him escape. I planned on capturing him once we got a safe distance away." His voice was soft as he spoke to Hize, laced with disappointment.

"What happened?" She asked as she ignored the slight tug on her scalp from where he started to braid bits of her hair.

"I was knocked out by the Yu Yan Archers. Dead hit on the forehead." He dropped his hands to his sides as he finished, then plopped down on her bed. She turned in her chair to listen to the rest of his story, a grin on her face. She folded her arms over the back of her chair and rested her chin on them.

"I told you so." She whispered to him with a smile. He glanced up at her before he ran a hand over the bald side of his head.

"He pulled me into the forest... And when I woke up; my mask was off. He knew it was me who saved him... And then... he asked that..." Zuko's gaze was on the floor, unable to look up at Hize. He knew she would have the same thought process as the Avatar.

"Zuko?" She leaned forward and gently rested her hand on his nearby knee. "You okay?" He glanced back up at her.

"He wanted to know that, if things were different, if we could've been friends." He admitted softly. Hize pulled her hand back with a smile.

"And that bothered you?" She was surprised, to say the least. Zuko wasn't the kind of person to let trivial things like that get to him.

"I attacked him." Zuko ignored her and continued. "But I can't help but wonder..." He trailed off, gaze on the ceiling.

"Wonder what it would be like if you weren't from the Fire Nation?" Zuko nodded at her question. She let out a bitter laugh and stood up. "Well, if you were part of the Water Tribes, you would live in fear every day. Always wondering when the Fire Nation would steal your home right from under you. And if you were part of the Earth Kingdom, you would either be paranoid about the Ba Sing Se wall falling... or you'd live like a slave, seeing to the Fire Nation's every whim." By the time Hize stopped talking, she had her back turned to Zuko and her fists clenched. He stood suddenly.

Hize turned back to him and drew her head back in surprise to see him right there behind her. She took a hesitant step back, unsure if he was violently angry or just upset. Zuko shook his head before he glared directly into Hize's golden eyes.

"I will stop this, Hize." His voice held all confirmation; this was something Zuko _was_ going to do. "When I regain my throne... there will be changes." He whispered softly and he reached for her hand. Their fingers intertwined together as he took another step closer. Hize felt her pupils dilate suddenly. Zuko smiled as he noticed them as well.

"You're enjoying this?" He teased softly as he ran his fingertips over the palm of her hand. He felt her muscles spasm at the tickle they produced. Her arm tensed up as she tried to control the itch. Zuko chuckled softly at the feel of her muscles straining. They stood there for a few minutes, simply close to one another until Hize broke the silence.

"Zuko?" She asked softly with a tilt of her head. He raised an eyebrow for her to continue. "Do you think you can coach me in my Fire Bending?" She shuffled her feet. She didn't enjoy talk of her weakness; and Fire Bending was her weakness. She could barely do it. And when she was actually able too, it took way too much out of her.

Zuko pulled his hand away from hers and moved around her to the door. It thrust open with a yank from the banished Prince. As he stepped out of the room, he glanced back at Hize. "Are you coming?" He chimed as he exited the room with an eye roll. Hize was quick to leave the room. She closed the door with a resounding slam and followed him over into... _his room?_ Hize looked at his door cautiously before she pushed it open gently. Her eyebrow twitched upwards when she saw that there were candles placed around the room. She jumped when the door slammed behind her. She turned around quickly, her hair swayed behind her. Her eyes were wide as she stared at Zuko, the culprit whom closed the door. He didn't look at her as he thrust his hand out, fire flew off of his palm and all the candles lit immediately.

Hize's eyebrows shot upwards, a grin on her face. "How romantic." She cooed to him. He shot her a glare and sat cross-legged in front of a grouping of candles.

"Shut up. Sit down and relax." He gestured to his side. She nodded her head and sat down beside him. She mimicked his stance and rested her hands in her lap, back tense. Zuko rolled his eyes.

"Relax. Stare into the fire. Feel it's warmth." He cooed to her gently in hopes to calm her down. Hize took a deep breath before she turned her gaze to the flame. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she concentrated on the flickering movement it gave off. Her body began to sway as the candle light swayed. Her head lulled to the side and she stared at the flame with her eyes half-lidded.

Zuko smiled beside her, pleased with her reaction. She was listening to him, surprisingly. She was letting the flame take over her. He gently reached over and let his hand hover over the candle. The flame brightened before it dulled, then the process repeated once again.

"Do the same. Make the flame strong, then weak... strong, then weak..." He cooed into her ear softly as he leaned in beside her. Hize reached her hand out and placed it on top of his own pale hand gently. She closed her eyes as she tried to use a push-and-pull method on the flame. In her mind, she imagined the flame glow brighter then duller. She kept thinking about that until it was all she saw in her mind. Her eyes slowly opened and her golden gaze was on the flickering candle. As she thought of it brighten, it brightened; as she thought of it getting dull, it dulled.

She felt the flame leave an imprint in her mind as her focus seemed to increase. She could feel the warmth from the small candle as it grew and shrunk. Slowly, Zuko removed his hand from under Hize's once he thought she got the hang of it. When his hand left, the flames only changed slightly from one brightness to the other, no longer as effective. Zuko leaned over towards her to speak quietly into her ear.

"It's okay. Concentrate." He whispered, his lips brushing over her ear gently. She visibly shivered at the gesture before her eyes narrowed in concentration. She was determined to show him that she could do this. Within a few seconds, the flame was bright before it went dull and the process continued. A smile graced Zuko's lips as he pulled back from Hize to watch her as she concentrated on the task at hand.

For years, Hize had struggled with her Fire Bending. She was a skilled fighter, that much is true. But she never had much talent in Fire Bending. She could get some smoke every now and then, and she could redirect the fire easily enough. But she had a hard time creating flames or controlling them. She was no where near Iroh's level of redirecting lightening. She wasn't even near the beginner level.

Over the years, Zuko had coaxed Hize into meditations and small training sessions such as this one, but with little to no results. He hoped that with the new stress of the Avatar, as well as their announcement of affections to one another, Hize would either have enough anger or joy to be able to control what fire was in front of her. Apparently, she did if she was able to manipulate the flame that was in front of her.

Hize pulled her hand back from the flame slowly, a test to see if she could control the flame without her hand being directly over it. It was working; the small fire kept flickering like Zuko intended. She smiled to herself as she stared into the flame and used her mind to continue to control the flame. The flames responded positively and didn't falter a bit.

Zuko leaned back a bit with his arms crossed as he watched Hize's serene face. He watched as she slowly began to slump. Her head dropped forward and to the side a bit as complete relaxation overtook her. All the flames in the room surged heatedly before they died down to a bare flicker. Zuko's eyebrows rose and he leaned forward to check on Hize, but laughed softly when he realized she had fallen asleep. He leaned his body over his lap and blew out the candles on her side before he turned around and did the same to the candles in front of her. He stood up, only a few candles still lit, and made his way to his bed. He didn't want to bother Hize, so he would leave her where she was.

He jerked his hands back when he grabbed the object of his search. The thin, cotton blanket hung limply in his hands. It was a deep crimson with the Fire Nation symbol in bright red on it. Zuko turned away from his bed before silently approaching Hize. He gently placed the blanket around her shoulders and crouched down beside her. He bit his lip as he hesitantly reached out to her. He sucked in a soft breath as he pushed her hair out of her face and leaned forward to gently press his lips upon her forehead. Once that was done, he stood up suddenly, his fists clenched. He turned towards the door with a glare on his face, ready to go command his crew.

[Page Break]

A groan flowed from Hize's lips as she twitched from her position on the ground. While in her sleep, she had rested her body flat on the ground with the blanket wrapped around her in a cocoon. She was curled up beside the candles she was practicing with earlier, her legs curled up to her chest and her arms tangled in the blanket. She sat up suddenly and the blanket slid off of her and to the floor. She sat cross-legged and looked around the room with her eyes narrowed in irritation and confusion. It took a moment for her to realize she was in Zuko's bedroom.

A small blush spread across her face as she remembered their intimate meditation session. Her eyes drifted to the small window-vents in Zuko's room, only to find that it was dark outside. Her head tilted to look over at Zuko's bed and she was surprised to see that Zuko was laying on his bed with his back to her. She could tell by the way he was breathing that he was asleep, but he would shiver every so often. She rolled her eyes at his logic of sleeping without a shirt when he had no blanket, but then it dawned on her that _she_ had his blanket. She stood up silently and made her way over to him.

He was on the very edge of his bed, curled up into himself. His hair was still up in his ponytail, which caused Hize to chuckle softly. She shook her head as she untangled the blanket. She was aware that Fire Benders enjoyed the heat, she knew that Zuko would want a blanket to cover him even if his room was rather hot. Then again, Hize was the same way even if she wasn't a Fire Bender. Once the blanket was untangled, she lifted it into the air and slowly draped it over him. She saw him snuggle into his bed slightly and a grin crossed her face.

As quietly and gently as she could, she sat down beside him and gently worked his hair out of his ponytail; she didn't want another fiasco happening like what did a few months ago. Zuko had gone to bed with his ponytail still up and his hair was tangled up for almost a week. It was hell getting it out all the knots. She could testify to that.

She felt her fingers run through his black hair gently and a smile came to her lips. She allowed her eyes to wander around his rather intimidating room. It was cold, despite all the heat that was stuffed in the metal walled room. There was nothing of interest in the room besides the broadswords that were on display. Other than that, it was bland.

As her thoughts spun around in her head and her fingers coaxed through her prince's hair, she felt the effects of her meditation rushing back to her. Her eyes slowly began to feel heavier and heavier; until she simply had to close them.

And then she was out like a light.


	14. Bato of the Water Tribe

A/N: I really apologize for such an extended hiatus from this story. School started and I just lost all creative interest in anything. I stopped writing, I stopped reading, I stopped playing video games... I just stopped. Now that Christmas Break is here, I hope to make a few updates. Luckily, I've fixed all problems that I once had with my computer and now it runs better than ever, so don't believe me if I use technology as an excuse! What really got me was a review that I received from a reader. It was the first one in months and it made me realize that there are a lot of fans that have been waiting for the next chapter for quite a while. Here you guys go. :D

[Page Break]

Hize's golden orbs snapped open as she suddenly became aware of the weight resting on her right shoulder. Her head turned slightly to glance down at her limb, only to see a pale arm draped over it as it's hand rested on the pillow her head was on. Her eyes followed the length of the arm before catching a glimpse of Prince Zuko's sleeping face. Her lips curled up into a smile at the sight of him in so much peace.

Peace was a rare thing for him these days; he was always so worried about finding the Avatar and regaining his honor. It was frustrating for her, mainly because she couldn't do anything to make him feel more at ease. Hize rolled her eyes back into her head as she moved only slightly into a more comfortable position. She turned her head towards his hand and stopped moving when she felt his smooth skin against her cheek. She smiled to herself before she closed her eyes, content with the intimate moment that he was not aware of. Or so she thought.

Suddenly, his fingers twitched to brush against her cheek. His hand slid over her chin and down to her throat before his arm was stretched across her body with his hand on the opposite cheek. Hize opened her eyes to see a now fully awake Zuko staring back at her. His hand slid up into her black tresses and slowly began to run through the surprisingly non-tangled mess of hair. There was a long moment of silence and staring until Hize spoke up.

"Sorry... I'll go now." She muttered as she made a move to get up. Zuko's grip in her hair tightened to a painful degree. She let out a soft hiss before she relaxed into his bed. "Or not." She let out with a smile on her face. He scooted closer to her and buried his face into her pale shoulder, eyes closed. Hize got a flash of the past as the gesture brought back the times the two used to simply lay there together and enjoy one another's company.

"You fell asleep." He stated softly, his voice muffled by her skin. She giggled at the feel of his warm breath on her bicep. She tilted her neck so that her cheek was resting against the top of his head, but so that his hand was still in her hair.

"I did." She confirmed out loud as the two slowly began to drift in and out of slumber next to each other. For an hour, the two stayed like that, simply close to one another. Until Zuko decided it was time for him to get up an man his ship. He slid away from Hize, his fingers sliding out of her hair perfectly as he sat up. Hize followed his actions and she too sat up. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood, stretching her arms above her head. A loud pop was heard in the room as her spine cracked in all the right places. She let out a content sigh as she slowly rolled her shoulders out of the tense position they were in. She heard movement behind her, probably Zuko dressing, and ignored it. She was too focused on the sudden discomfort in her muscles.

Warmth flooded her shoulders as two larger hands came down upon them, enveloping them in such a warmth that Hize let out a loud sigh. The fingers began to dig in and out of her muscles gently in attempt to work out the kinks that she had received from her awkward sleeping position and her earlier meditation. The force the fingers had, along with the total comfort the appendages brought, caused Hize to lose her balance. She stumbled back into the broad chest behind her, which caused her to let out a small noise of surprise and her face to go bright red. Zuko hadn't put a shirt on yet. His chest began to shake slightly as a small rumble of a chuckle slid from his lips. He was definitely amused with Hize's reaction.

To test the boundaries Hize had, he allowed his hands to slid down from her shoulders and down her arms. She tilted her head back to rest it in the crook of his neck, her eyes on the scarred side of Zuko's face. His hands stopped on her forearms when he felt that the muscles were tense. He gently dug his thumb into her muscle and rotated. He could feel the muscles slowly untighten and relax as he was doing so. His hands traveled back up her arms to her shoulders, before they slid down to her back. She let out a soft yelp as they dug into her spine. Zuko chuckled once again.

"I'm sorry I forgot to warn you about the stiffness. Meditation does that to you every once in a while." His voice was right in her ear. Her body shivered softly against his own, which made Hize blush more because she knew that he had felt it. She felt him smile and then movement, he was leaning down towards her face. Her eyes followed his face until, with the position of their necks, they were almost facing one another. Zuko stared at her for a moment before he began to lean in, lips slightly parted. Hize gaze traveled down to his lips, then back up to his eyes as she began to lean upwards. Their lips were mere centimeters apart when there was a loud knock on the door.

The two barely had time to separate before Iroh waltzed into his nephews room, a curious expression on his face. "Zuko, have you seen-" His sentence stopped when he saw the flustered Hize rubbing her left arm shyly, his bare-chested nephew several feet away from her with the same redness on his own face. Iroh's eyebrow twitched upwards and a small grin pulled at his lips. "Nevermind. I see you know where Hize is." His voice held a tone in it that Hize couldn't place, but it caused her to glare at him through her embarrassment. Zuko scowled at his uncle as well.

"Leave me, I'm going to get dressed." He ordered the two people within the walls of his room. Hize was the first one out, pushing past Iroh. She was ready to get out of there, even if she was rather angry their moment had been interrupted. Only a moment later and Iroh was at her side, a silly grin on his face. He was going to bug her, she just knew it.

"Hize, you spent the night with Zuko." Iroh didn't ask, he stated. Hize let out a groan and brought her hand to her face to cover the blush that spread across her face.

"Iroh, please..." She whined out, not wanting to deal with the elder mans teasing right now. But the retired General would have none of that. He let out a merry chuckle, holding his stomach.

"I wonder if my brother will soon become a grandfather!" He jested at the girl. Her face turned an even fiercer red as they stopped at her door. She turned around to Iroh.

"You shut up! It wasn't like that! Nothing like that happened! And even if it did, I wouldn't tell you!" She yelled in embarrassment before she ducked into her room and slammed the door close. She groaned as she heard the sound of his laughter even from all the way down the hall.

"Damn old man." She cursed with a pout on her lips.

[Page Break]

Hize golden glare was directed to the rather pleased elder gentleman across from her as the man brought a cup of tea to his lips and took a casual sip. Zuko was beside her, attempting to ignore the potentially awkward situation. There was a steaming cup of tea in front of herself, but she refused to touch it. She had been glaring at Iroh for almost an hour straight, she wanted to make a record. Iroh, though obvious to Hize's heated gaze, ignored it and grinned at Zuko before pouring his nephew a cup of tea once he downed one more sip.

"Ahh! See, Prince Zuko, a moment of quiet is good for your mental well being." He wiggled his eyebrows at Hize. "And even physical well being." If she could, Hize would've transformed into one of the ancient dragons then and there to blow a fierce flame at the source of her embarrassment. Instead, she stuck to the reaction her body was telling her to take and blushed as she dropped her head to the table they sat at to bury her red face into her sleeve-covered arms. Hize's gaze drifted to Zuko and she was pleased to see that he had a small blush upon his own face, but he remained stoic.

He hesitated only slightly before he brought the cup up to take a drink, his eyes drifted down to Hize's and their blushes intensified. Suddenly, a shock went through the ship that caused Hize to slightly shriek and loose her balance. She slid to her right and bumped into Zuko; between Hize's bump and the shock itself, the tea Zuko was attempting to drink spilled all over his face. Hize's face instantly morphed into one of disbelief, before she brought her hand to her mouth. Snorts of laughter could be heard escaping from her lips, very unladylike of her. Zuko slammed his hands down and stood up angrily, grunting in anger. He stormed out of the room to question his crew about what the noise was.

Hize glanced over at Iroh and then the both of them erupted into laughter. Hize clutched her sides as she began to feel pain from the continuous onslaught of giggles. "D-Did you see his face?" She asked as she leaned forward to use the table as support to keep her up. Iroh, who was in the same predicament as her, grinned as he slowly began to calm down.

"We best see what has happened, Hize." He stood and held his hand out to her. No longer angry with him, Hize grabbed his hand and he pulled her up. The two quickly made their way to the fore deck where all the commotion was coming from.

Hize pushed open the door and her eyebrow arched high. There was a girl, maybe a year or two older than her, with black hair and dark clothing upon a massive animal. The crew on Zuko's ship had scattered away from the beast and seemed to be afraid of the unknown animal. Hize let out a soft whistle as she eyed it. With her training to become the White Dragon, she was educated in plenty of fields; and Earth Kingdom animals were one of those fields.

"A shirshu." Hize breathed out, never seeing one herself until today. They were massive animals that could be used as mounts. Born with no eyes, they used their tongue to smell the air to find their prey. Taking in the girls appearance and the fact that she had a shirshu, Hize assumed she must've been a bounty hunter.

"Get back! We're after a stowaway!" The girl upon the mount called to the crew, a scowl upon her face. Zuko, who was a few feet ahead of Hize, looked appalled.

"There are no stowaways on my ship." He confirmed as he crossed his arms over his chest. Hize's gaze was on the shirshu as it ripped off a chuck of plating from the deck and hurled it to the side. Hize didn't flinch as it went whizzing past her head. As the shirshu stuck it's head down into the ship, Hize caught the sound of barrels falling and a man whimpering. Suddenly, a man wearing dingy Earth Kingdom garb crawled out of the ship and onto the fore deck. The shirshu turned only slightly and flicked it's tongue out. It whipped the back of the stowaway's neck. The man dropped to the deck immediately, unable to move. A small smirk crossed Hize's face as she watched the man stay conscious but be paralyzed.

"He's paralyzed..." Zuko noted out loud as he took a step forward. The dark haired girl had jumped down from her shirshu and tossed the man easily over her shoulder.

"Only temporarily. The toxins'll wear off in about an hour. But by then he'll be in jail and I'll have my money." Her voiced cooed softly, a satisfied smirk upon her heavily make-uped face. Hize crossed her arms, feeling slightly intimidated with another powerful female on deck.

"But how did you find him on my ship?" Zuko demanded with a scowl directed at the girl. The girl raised her hand and pet her shirshu before she hefted herself up onto the saddle. "My shirshu can smell a rat a continent away." She cooed as she stroked the beast. Beside Hize, Iroh brought a hand up to his chin and stared at the young girl.

"Well, I'm impressed." The girl cracked her whip down onto the deck and the shirshu bolted off the ship and onto the dock. Hize peered over the edge of the ship and locked her gaze into the older girls' before the shirshu continued it's mad dash down the dock.

"Very impressed." Iroh commented as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. Hize rolled her eyes at Iroh's sudden attraction to the young woman and swiftly turned to enter the ship once again. Zuko watched after her and followed close behind. As she walked down the hall that led to her bedroom, she reached her arms behind her back to grab the laces of the purple and pink tunic that covered her white gown. She tugged on them and they loosened immediately. It began to slide down and she tugged it over her head swiftly. She draped it over her arm and stopped in front of her door, only in her white gown. She glanced back at Zuko and saw that he was staring at her.

"I'll be ready in a few minutes." She said simply before she entered her room, ready to become the White Dragon.

[Page Break]

Hize's lip curled up as she walked into the small, three story building in her White Dragon disguise. She was almost smacked in the face at the overwhelming smell of musk and testosterone. In her sights was the dark haired bounty hunter, whom was arm wrestling with a beefy man. The man was covered in sweat and he grunted every now and then as he tried to beat the girl. Ahead of the Dragon, Zuko shoved a few people to the side so he could walk.

"Out of my way! Step aside, filth!" He growled out. Hize rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms over her chest and walked behind him casually. He made no eye contact with anyone, focused only on the bounty hunter. Behind the Dragon, Iroh smiled at those Zuko had shoved aside.

"He means no offense! I'm sure you bathe regularly." He commented as the three of them reached the table the bounty hunter was arm-wrestling at. Zuko glowered down at the girl, causing a smirk to tug at Hize's lips. She didn't want to have to be jealous in this situation.

"I need to talk to you." His voice was strong and commanded the hunters attention. But the girl made no move to look up at him.

"Well, if it isn't my new friends, Angry Boy and Uncle Lazy." Suddenly, the girl ended her contest with a swift move of her arm. The crowd around them erupted into cheers and suddenly, a load of money landed on the table in front of the hunter. The girl raised her gaze to the Dragon. "Oh, and what's this... A Silent Dragon now?" She smirked.

"Your beast trashed my ship. You have to pay me back." Zuko ignored the girl and only continued his commands. The hunter pulled the money towards her and glanced up at him.

"Aww, I'd love to help you out, but I'm a little short on money." Hize's eyebrow twitched in irritation. "Drinks on me!" She yelled the crowd, cheers of happiness immediately erupting afterward. Zuko moved forward as the girl brought her drink up to her lips, his hand tightened around her wrist almost painfully.

"Money isn't what I had in mind." He growled out to her. Hize's head snapped over to the banished prince as her eyes narrowed at him, already assuming something she knew was incorrect. The room grew a bit silent at the manhandling done to the woman. It wasn't tense silence, just curious. They were waiting to see what June, the bounty hunter, would do. She glared at him and she pulled her wrist away from him and stood up. The Dragon took a step back and shoved a few men to the side to make room for the girl as she followed them to the outside of the building.

June gave the Dragon a smirk and cooed, "How sweet, such a gentleman." Hize rolled her eyes behind her mask and let out a small snort. The Dragon shook his head before exitting the building, arms crossed over his chest again. When everyone was outside, he leaned against the wall of the building and waited for Zuko to speak.

Zuko fumbled around in his pocket for a second before he pulled out the same pretty necklace that Hize had been admiring a few weeks before; the necklace that belonged to that Water Tribe girl. He held it out towards the bounty hunter. "I need you to find someone." The girl leant down, hands on her knees slightly as she studied the necklace. Her shirshu was behind her, resting on the ground. The Dragon's gaze moved up and away from the group, his golden eyes resting on the moths that were flittering around the bright light that was beside the door of the building.

"What happened? Your girlfriend run off on you?" June asked, sitting up and leaning against her mount with her arms over her chest and a smirk upon her face. The Dragon tilted his head down to peer at the girl. Zuko's eyes switched to the Dragon momentarily before he spoke.

"It's not the girl I'm after. It's the bald monk she's traveling with." He pulled the necklace back to him and scowled.

"Whatever you say." She didn't care, not at all. She just wanted to get these Fire Nation fools off her back.

"If you find them, I'll consider all the damage done to my ship paid for." Zuko tried to make a deal, but the hunter wasn't too interested. She let out a short laugh and turned around to climb her mount.

"Forget it." Why should she bother with their deal? Iroh, sensing Zuko's frustration, spoke up.

"Plus we'll pay your weight in gold." He offered. The Dragon turned his head towards the older man and looked at him like he was crazy behind her mask. Iroh must really have a crush on this chick. June smirked and stalked over to Iroh, determined.

"Make it your weight," she poked Iroh's stomach, "and we've got a deal." She narrowed her eyes. Iroh chuckled, holding his budda belly as he laughed.

"Haha, you got it!" He watched as the girl snatched the necklace from Zuko and turned towards the shirshu. "Get on." She ordered the three men around her, her gaze locking on the Dragon for a second. She paused in mid-step and a look of recognition crossed her face. She shook her head with a smirk and continued to her shirshu, holding the necklace in front of its nose. It sniffed it several times before it lifted its' head sharply, turning it left and right to catch the scent. The Dragon, noticing Iroh and Zuko already on the shirshu, quickly jumped up on animal. He settled behind Zuko and didn't hesitate to grip the princes' hips, he knew this was going to be a bumpy ride. June quickly jumped up on her shirshu and flicked the reigns, causing it to jet off into the forest. Iroh and Zuko let out a yelp as they were caught by surprise, but the Dragon only let out a soft laugh.

[Page Break]

It didn't take too long, in the Dragon's opinion, for night to break away into day. The four found themselves in a deserted town that was placed on a hillside. They were at the base of the hill and rapidly approaching what could have easily once been the twon square. An Herbalist was crouched near the ground, harvesting some plants meticulously. There was a white cat beside her that tensed up and hissed when it heard the sound of the shirshu approaching. The old woman stood up and smiled at the four that were placed atop the shirshu. She spoke first.

"OUt for a bit of fresh air, are we?" She asked kindly. The Dragon was surprised that an old Earth Kingdom Herbalist was speaking to them, Fire Nationers, unafraid. Either she was truly unafraid, or unstable in the head.

"We're looking for someone." Zuko said, a little out of breath. Riding the shirshu surprisingly took a lot out of people. Hize found herself a bit winded after all that whipping around and what not.

"I hope it's not Miyuki." She looked down at the white, fluffy cat. "Miyuki, did you get in trouble with the Fire Nation again?" She asked her cat. Right then and there, Hize made the conclusion that she was, in fact, unstable in the head. The cat let out a meow to it's master before moving to hid behind the older woman. The shirshu continued to sniff the air viciously.

"The avatar's been though here. Let's keep moving!" June announced to the three behind her and cracked her whip onto the ground beside the shirshu. At the sound, the mount immediately took off. Hize groaned as she felt the ill feeling rise up in her stomach once again, she didn't like this shirshu much. She leant forward and rested her masked face against Zuko's back as her grip tightened and her eyes slowly closed.

She was awoken to the sounds of screaming from the villiage they were in. Obviously, they weren't used to a shirshu being in their home. The Dragon lifted his head and caught sight of an older woman in red and yellow robes, standing emotionlessly beside a building. The shirshu came to rest in front of the building she was standing beside and Zuko growled.

"Why are we stopping?" He demanded to know the answer. Currently, this was becoming a wild goose chase. They hadn't found the Avatar and it was frustrating him to no end.

"Because the girl must of spent a lot of time here." June replied simply.

"We have no time for this!" Zuko snatched the necklace from June's hand and jumped down from the shirshu. He walked in front of the beast and held it in front of the shirshu's nose. The shirshu must have recognized that it was not his master because his beast drew back and whipped its paralyzing tongue out at Zuko. He ducked and twirled to avoid it before he pulled back and took a defensive stance.

"Hey, watch it!" He growled out. Iroh let out a laugh and Hize rolled her eyes at the banished princes' behavior.

"Oh look, he likes you." June cooed with the smallest of a smile upon her face. The older lady that was resting beside the door was now standing a few feet away from the shirshu, her gaze on Iroh.

"Care to hear your fortune, handsome?" She asked, narrowing her eyes with a smile on her face. Hize almost gagged but let a feminine giggle slip from her mouth. She mentally cursed at herself as she wasn't supposed to let her gender slip out. Iroh responded with a smile.

"At my age there is really only one big surprise left, adn I'd just as soon leave it a mystery." As he said this, Zuko had climbed back up onto the shirshu. The bounty hunter cracked her whip once again and the shirshu took off rapidly.

It was later afternoon and the shirshu, as well as it's passengers, had found their way to an abbey that had a mixture of smells coming from it. The shirshu burst through the gate, startling all the sisters of the abbey. The shirshu crouched down and began to smell the ground, looking for the trail. It turned to the left and let out a cry.

"We're getting close." June said, a smirk on her face. She cracked her whip once again and the monster bounded out and onto the path, taking a left turn when it curved. The Dragon tensed and turned his head back, looking at the path that led to the right. His intuition was tugging on his sleeve, telling him they were going the wrong way.

[Page Break]

The shirshu's speed increased suddenly and the Dragon knew they were close. They jumped over a small cliff and landed down, eyes immediately settling on two Water Tribe members. The Dragon recognized them both as Sokka and Katara, the two that traveled with the Avatar. But no Avatar. Zuko wasn't going to be happy about this. When the shirshu cornered the two, June spoke. The Dragon immediately jumped off of the shirshu and made sure his tonfa-blades were in place, ready for a fight.

"So this is your girlfriend..." June muttered as Zuko followed the Dragon to the ground. "No wonder she left. She's way too pretty for you." The Dragon let out a small growl, finding the bounty hunter increasingly irritating. Zuko ignored her and glared at Katara.

"Where is he? Where's the Avatar?" He demanded, his fists clenched and his lip curled upwards. Sokka pushed Katara behind him gently and glared at Zuko. "We split up! He's long gone!" He responded defiantly. He wasn't going to give Zuko the information that easily. Plus, it didn't help that he didn't really know where the Avatar was. Zuko wasn't having that.

"How stupid do you think I am?" He asked, rolling his eyes at the Water Tribe boy. Sokka grinned smugly.

"Pretty stupid." He quickly grabbed his sister by the arm and pulled her with a yell of "RUN!" The Dragon grinned behind the mask, highly pleased by the comment before he kicked off the ground and towards the two escapees. An animalistic grunting sound was heard and he quickly moved to the left, allowing the shirshu's tongue to paralyze both the boy and girl. The Dragon ignored Zuko and June's conversation as he approached the two fallen people. The shirshu followed the Dragon's pink scent before smelling the Water boy. A small scroll fell out of his pack and onto the ground. The shirshu sniffed it before smelling into the woods. It took several steps forward before June stopped it, glancing back at the Dragon.

The Dragon crouched down beside the two and sighed. He'd seen them before, and they had seen him before. He stared at them for a minute before he grabbed the girl and lifted it over his shoulder gently. He didn't want to hurt her and he wasn't sure if he could pick up the boy. Zuko, who wasn't on the shirshu yet, picked up the boy. Zuko tossed him roughly over the beast while the Dragon was much gentler with the girl. The tanner two glared at both the Dragon and Zuko. Zuko simply ignored it as he jumped onto the shirshu. The Dragon took his time in making sure that they were safely upon the shirshu before he jumped up and settled himself behind Zuko and next to Sokka. He glanced down at the tanner boy before nodding to June.

It only took them a few minutes to get back to the abbey, busting through the already repaired gate. The shirshu began to stomp around and smelling the air, looking for the scent it caught on the scroll. It began to go into a continuous curve and Zuko huffed.

"What's it doing? It's just going around in a circle!" Zuko wasn't pleased. The shirshu lifted its head and the riders lifted theirs as well, seeing the Avatar circling above them on his glider. The shirshu jumped up onto its hind legs as the Avatar flew over his head, trying to paralyze him with its tongue. The Dragon was swift and knew that the shirshu would lose it's balance and they would all fall off, he grabbed the two hostages and jumped off of the shirshu. Their weight was too much and the Dragon went crashing to the ground, the two blue clad teens ontop of him. With them paralyze, they were like dead weight.

"Shit." Hize breathed out, struggling to push the two off of her. She grunted out a few times before she was able to get out and stand up. The shirshu had fallen on it's back and the other three riders were scattered around the courtyard. Katara, who was watching the Dragon, looked up and saw the Avatar.

"Aang!" She said happily. June got up and whipped the shirshu, yelling at him to get up. The beast did so and let out a roar as the bounty hunter jumped onto the shirshu's back and they began after the Avatar. Suddenly, the shirshu was knocked to the side harshly by the flying bison that the Avatar traveled by. They connected with the wall of a building and knocked a huge hole into it.

The Dragon stood up and moved away from the paralyzed and watched as two sisters of the abbey pulled them away with a glare in his direction. He brushed it off and stalked towards the gate, watching Zuko as he approached the Avatar. Zuko let a blast of fire out of his hands and to the ground as he clenched his fists and glared at the Avatar. He suddenly brought his hands across his chest and sent a blast of fire at the Avatar, who swiftly avoided it. The Dragon turned his head when he saw something small flying at him. It was the lemur that was always with Team Avatar.

He moved to the left and brought his palm up to the lemur and shoved him to the ground. The lemur made a cute little noise before he dashed away from the masked man and over to one of the sisters of the abbey. The Dragon glanced out to see Zuko and Aang still going at it. His legs guided him to one of the perfume gourds that was used to mix the smells. He stood next to one that smelled particularly lovely. Hize let out a smile before she looked around, making sure no one saw her. Then she reached down swiftly and grabbed two bottles of the liquid that was sitting beside the gourd, shoving them into her sash with another glance around. A sudden explosion caused the former assassin to look up with wide eyes.

Two bodies came flying out of the smoke, Zuko soaring to the left and crashing into a buildings roof, and Aang doing the same but to the right. The Dragon glanced to the right as she noticed Iroh run towards June and pat her cheek to wake her up. It must have worked because she was up and whipped at the shirshu. The monster rose to its feet and June took to the saddle again. They took this time to charge at Appa, but the bison jumped into the air and over the two. The shirshu flicked its tongue out and sliced the bisons back leg with it. The bison landed roughly and struggled to stay standing for a second, before he fell.

June was too pleased. The bison wasn't going to give up. He stood back up and the two monsters had a stare down. They began charging after June whipped the shirshu again. The Dragon found her methods of control to be harsh, but who was he to tell others how to do things? He watched silently as his small trek stopped beside Iroh. The older male glanced at the Dragon. They nodded to one another, but nothing was said.

The Dragon's head lifted when she saw that Zuko was up and running towards the fallen Avatar. The Avatar began to sit up groggily but saw that Zuko was running at him with a blast of fire out of his hand. The prince let out a cry as he whipped his hand forward and sent the blast at the Avatar. The kid dodged it by jumping into the air, and flipping over the prince. They then began to battle it out while on the roofing. The Dragons head snapped to the side as he noticed the Water Tribe boy speaking and moving his arm slightly. Suddenly, tiling fromt he roof above fell down and collapsed on the boy. The Dragon let out a small smile and laughed out at that.

When she turned her gaze back to the two teens fighting, she saw that they were balancing on the edge of a well, sending blasts of fire and air at each other. The Avatar go the upper hand when he dodged Zuko, who had lunged for him. He pressed his foot on the princes' back and flipped into the air. The Dragon noticed a glimer in the light and saw the Water Tribe necklace hanging from the Avatars boot. He brought his hand up and grabbed it in his hand tightly. He fell down into the well they were fighting over and Zuko took advantage. He jumped onto the edge and sent a blast of fire down into the dark cavern. Water suddenly shot up and knocked Zuko into the air, The Avatar flipped out and landed in a crouch, the water raining down on him. Zuko landed on the ground hard, face first. He let out a groan and the Dragon kicked into action.

The masked warrior pushed off of the ground and shot at the Avatar, earning the a yell of 'Aang!' from the Water Tribe girl. The Avatar turned around and quickly did a backflip as the Dragon slashed at his chest with his tonfa. They began to circle one another before the Dragon dashed forward and sliced up. The Avatar was swift and did another backflip, this process continued for a minute until the Dragon dropped to the ground and swung his legs out. He successfully tripped up the Avatar and towered over him. He brought his hand back to slam it into the boys head to knock him out, before the Avatar gasped and sent a huge blast of air at the Dragon.

It was now the Dragon's turn to gasp as he was shot into the air. He spread his hands to try and stop the momentum, but it wasn't enough. He crashed to the ground, his stomach crashing into the edging of the well. He felt all the breath leave him as he connected. He rolled to the side and lay in the wetness, hand on his stomach in pain. He heard the sound of Zuko getting up and knew that it was enough of a distraction for the prince to recover. He was done for now.

It was only a moment later and he felt more liquid rain down on him. It wasn't water, it smelled to... horrible. It was perfume. They were disabling the shirshu. He let out a cough as he struggled to sit up in the midst of the smell. He watched as the shirshu went crazy, paralyzing June and Zuko before running around in circles and running out of the abbey, away from the scent. The Dragon struggled to stand up as he watched the two Tribe members approach the Avatar. He grunted as he stood, catching the attention of the three. They stared at him. His hair was loose from his bun and some hung down, wet and sticking to the mask. His golden eyes narrowed into a glare. He allowed them to get away once, but he wasn't going to do it this time. He stumbled forward and the Water boy brought out his boomerang, holding it up defensively.

The Dragon still had one hand pressed to his stomach in pain as he flicked his other wrist, getting a firmer grip on the tonfa in his hand. He attempted to take another step before his stomach tightened and his legs gave out. He collapsed to the ground, landing face-first into the perfume puddle. He rolled over slowly and stared up at the sky. He heard the sound of Team Avatar retreating and knew that it was over.


	15. Return to Comfort

**A/N:** Again, sorry for the extended break. I'll attempt to update at least twice a month when the new semester starts. I've been talking to my teachers and they've assured me that the work load should slow down. I hope the first part will be done rather soon... Then I'll be moving on to Book Two. I think book two will be the hardest to work with. I mean... I have to work around Zuko's relationship with Song and work Hize into the whole Azula-Zuko-Iroh tirade. Guh. And, I still haven't decided what Hize will do at the end of the book. I think I'm just going to go with the flow of things and she'll tell me what she wants...

**[Page Break]**

The Dragon let out a hiss as he slowly sat up. He was drenched in many different perfumes, and his stomach was killing him still. His eyes were stinging and he wanted to rub them, but he couldn't through the mask. Aggressively, Hize ripped the mask off and quickly took the tonfa out of their holdings on her gloves, pressing the palms of her hands into her eyes with another hiss. The sisters around the abbey stared at their fallen team before the Superior hesitated in grabbing a wet cloth from one of the basins of water nearby and approaching the girl.

Hize heard the Superiors' splashing steps and looked up, narrowing her now bloodshot eyes at the lady. She didn't know what to expect, and it certainly wasn't the older woman holding out a rag to help rid the sting in her eyes. She reached up hesitantly before she grabbed it and rubbed at her eyes with it. It took a few moments, but the pain slowly subsided and she could see clearly.

The Superior had already backed up and the women continued to watch them with anticipation. Hize stood up slowly, stretching her limbs. She reached down and grabbed the mask, placing it on the side of her head instead of fully over her view. She grabbed her tonfa and slid them into her sash. With running a hand through her messy hair, which had long been void of it's bun, she stalked towards the paralyzed Zuko and June, along with the pseudo-injured Iroh.

"You okay?" She asked, crouching down beside Zuko as she checked on him. His eyes drifted towards her and they widened slightly. He struggled momentarily to try and get up, to no avail. The toxins hadn't even begun to wear off yet.

"Your mask." He said simply. At that phrase, June and Iroh glanced over at the girl. Iroh gave her a small smile and June attempted a smirk through her tight facial muscles.

"I knew it was you." She chimed. Hize let out a scoff and ignored her, bending down and gripping Zuko's armor. She let out a grunt as she pulled him. She struggled with his limp weight and pushed him back to where he was leaning against the wall of the building they were in front of. Her thoughts went back to June's words and she turned to the bounty hunter, walking over to her and pulling her up as well. She was much lighter, though she had to deal with Iroh's complaining.

"How?" She asked, settling the girl against the wall as gently as she could. Just because she wasn't fond of the dark haired girl didn't mean she was going to be violent towards her and let her crack her skull against the wall.

"Your eyes." June responded, rolling her eyes up to look at the now standing girl. Beside her, Iroh sat up and stood as well, stretching his limbs. She didn't understand. Her eyes were gold, like two thirds of the Fire Nation. Most everyone from her home nation had dark hair and gold eyes, as well as pale skin. With an eyeroll, June gave her reasoning. "They're not gold like most Fire Nationers. They're the same shade as the Mikado flower, darker than gold..." She said, tilting her gaze to the left. Hize raised a black eyebrow. She didn't know that, she always thought they were gold.

"Right." Hize didn't exactly believe her. Zuko snorted and her, apparently Mikado yellow, gaze drifted towards him. He narrowed his gaze at her and his lips twitched upwards a bit.

"She is right, Hize. Your eyes aren't gold. I thought you knew that." His sentence started strong, but he ended up fading off as he looked away from her intense glare. She crossed her arms over her cloaked chest.

"Are we done taking about something as meaningless as my eye color? I need to find a way to unparalyze you two twits." She turned away, ignoring a scowl she received from both of them. Her gaze drifted towards the Superior, who was watching them intensely. Hize swiftly made her way to her, causing the sisters of the abbey to take a step back in fear. She held out the rag to the Superior, who took it with a small smile.

"Thank you, Lady Superior." She said politely, turning her head to look back at her companions. "I noticed that you were the one who unparalyzed those Water Tribe siblings. Could you perhaps do the same for my friends?" She asked, slightly hesitating. She knew this was bizarre, asking the Superior for assistance when they had just broken into their abbey and destroyed almost everything. but then again, they were Fire Nation. And they ruled by fear.

The Superior paused for a moment, watching the younger girl, searching her eyes for something. Then the Superior turned away and grabbed a vial of some liquid. Even from the distance of two feet away, she could smell something pungent in the air. She eyed the container with disdain before looking back up at the Superior.

"Use this... But please, leave after they are able to move. That is all I ask for." She said, reluctantly handing over the bottle to the girl. Hize took it from the older woman and smiled gratefully.

"I give you my word." She bowed her head respectfully and turned away from the Superior. She was over to the fallen two in a matter of seconds. She went to June first, taking the cap off of the bottle and swaying it under her nose. Her face twitched into a grimace at the smell, but her limbs were immediately able to move and she was standing. Hize pivoted on her heels and held it under Zuko's nose.

The moment he could move, he shoved her hand away to get the bitter scent out of his nostrils. Hize let out a soft chuckle and stood up. She capped the perfume and sat it on the ground. She glanced back at the Superior before holding out her hand to help Zuko up. He, being the obnoxious person that he is, shoved her hand away roughly. She didn't take any offense and let her arms drop to her sides. When he was up, she turned towards the ruined gate of the town.

"Let's go... We've done enough here." She breathed out, closing her eyes as she reached up to rub her temple. Beside her, Iroh nodded in agreement, his hands folding inside his sleeves. Zuko growled and gave Hize a glare, ready to reprimand her. One abnormally serious look from Iroh made him simmer down immediately and he stalked out of the village, the other three hot on his heels.

"I need to find my shirshu, where's my gold?" June demanded once they were a considerable distance away from the abbey. Hize rolled her eyes, she hated bounty hunters... they were nothing but money-hungry fools that should be classified as criminals. Zuko glared at her.

"I don't have the Avatar. You don't get your gold." He growled out, leaning to get into her face. June scowled at him and swiftly brought her hand to grab her whip, ready to resort to violence. She was stopped by a rather tight and firm grip surrounding her wrist. She followed the arm to meet Hize's eyes, narrowed with intensity. June swallowed hesitantly before pulling her arm away from the hold.

"You're lucky, Angry Boy." She chided before she let out a high pitched whistle. The sound of thundering paws filled the area after almost two minutes of silence. The large shirshu came into view and halted next to its master, sniffing the air. June jumped up onto her mount and glowered down at the three before cracking her whip. She and the shirshu took off into the forest.

Iroh looked around the area. They were on a path within the forest, the same path that the shirshu followed just a few hours before. It took them almost a day on the shirshu to get where they were now... Iroh, noticing the problem, voiced the question on every ones mind.

"How are we going to get back to the ship, Prince Zuko?" He asked, glancing over at his nephew. Zuko's eyebrows were furrowed in anger. He hadn't thought of that. He let out a growl of anger before shooting off a flame into the ground. Hize rolled her eyes at Zuko. She knew he would be too much in a hurry to find the Avatar to make arrangements if something like this happened, so she had already taken things into her hands.

"Shoot a flame into the air." That earned her an odd look from Zuko and Iroh. She shook her head. "I spoke to Ziva before we left... He knows about me being the Dragon. I told him to be watching for our signal; a flame in the sky. I didn't trust her to begin with... I halfway expected her to turn on us." She said, shrugging slightly. Zuko's eyebrows furrowed in anger, why hadn't he thought of that? Iroh smiled at Hize and patted her on the shoulder in pride. Then he brought both hands back and thrust them into the sky, letting out a long flame. When the flames were out, she pointed to the right.

"There's a beach that way. They'll pick us up there." She said before pulling her mask over her face and beginning her trek to the beach.

**[Page Break]**

Once at the beach, they were greeted by a small river steamboat that was big enough for almost five people. Hize caught sight of Ziva, had his body propped against the railing and appeared to be spacing out as his gaze was directed at the sky. When he heard the sound of boots upon metal, he turned his head and gave the trio a small smile. It faltered, however, when Zuko gave him a rather intense glare and brushed past him. Ziva let out a breath before giving a small bow to his superiors.

"There is a change of clothes for you down below. If you feel like changing." He responded, eying Hize oddly. He was overwhelmed with the small that was coming off of her, it was just a mix of many different perfumes. When she didn't respond, he spoke again. "It's just me here, no need to worry about others finding out." He moved out of her way as she moved past him with a nod. She slipped down the stairs quickly and looked around.

There were two doors, one to the left and one to the right. With a narrow of her eyes, Hize let out a sigh before opening the left one first. Inside was a dimly lit room that had four simple chairs littered throughout the room, in the third chair was a pile of cloth. She entered the room and closed the door behind her.

Her eyes narrowed when she saw an array of red, black, and gold. Fire Nation colors. Ziva must have gotten this from one of her drawers, she never wears these clothes. She was very adamant about not wearing the traditional Fire Nation colors, she only hoped that it would remind Zuko that she had no intention of returning to the homeland with him when he did, if he ever, caught or killed the Avatar. She tossed her mask into one of the chairs before breathing out a spray of steam from her nostrils.

It only took her moments to be out of the damp warrior garb and into something much more sophisticated. It was a long-sleeved and high-collared gown that reached to the floor in a very deep red. The sleeves, as well as the hemming of the dress, was lined in a crimson color, then gold was behind the crimson, a swirling pattern occuring every few inches. Under the high collar was the same design as on the hemming, reaching down to below her left breast. The right side of the chest was void of any design other than the deep red. She slipped out of her black boots and the armor guards that were attached to her shins, and slipped on the rather comfortable red flats. It felt nice to be rid of that black body suit for once, less confining. A red sash rested in the chair still, which she swiftly grabbed and wrapped around her middle, tieing it expertly into a bow at the back. There will still much left over in the back, so it hung to her knees.

She eyed the onyx brush that sat on a nearby table before she shuffled her way over there. She raked through her hair as gently as she could, cursing as she hit several tangles along the way. She didn't put her hair in her typical two-bun-and-braids style, but decided that she might as well stay in with the Fire Nation theme. Much to her disdain, she pulled her hair into a bun-ponytail a top her head, held by a dark red ribbon that matched her gown. Of course, this was no where near enough to contain all of her jet black locks, so she pulled the rest into a tighter bun at the base of her neck and let the rest simply hang to her shoulder-blades. She looked into the reflective surface of the metal walls and noted that she looked decent. The ship had taken off from the shore almost ten minutes ago, so she was hoping they were relatively close to their scouter ship.

Just as the teen girl was making her way back up the stairs, she felt the ship come to a rather lurching stop. She let out a soft cry as she fell forwards. Her body was about to connect to the ground of the upper level until a tight grip grabbed her and steadied her. She lifted head to thank Ziva, as she assumed it was him, but a scowl crossed her face. She pulled herself away from the older male and took a few steps away from him.

"If I were you, I wouldn't touch what belongs to others so freely, Admiral." She practically spat, her eyes narrowed. A flicker of a smile crossed Admiral Zhao's face before a smirk took it's place. She turned her head to the side and towards the sea. She saw the reason as to why they were stopped; directly in front of them was a rather large cruiser that was stopped. Given the fact that a Fire Nation Admiral was on her steamboat, she led herself to the brilliant conclusion that it was his.

"Oh? So now you're a simple belonging?" He asked, tilting his head to the side as one of his eyebrows quirked up with the comment. Hize narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to speak, but a hand was placed onto her shoulder and she was pushed behind the taller prince of the ship.

"What are you doing on my ship, Admiral?" He asked, eyes narrowed in hatred. Zhao laughed, gritting his teeth slightly.

"I noticed your little boat and couldn't help but wonder if you happened to catch sight of the Avatar. Then I realized I hadn't paid my favorite little prince a visit in a while." He was smug, that's what Hize hated about him. He was condescending and absolutely rude to everyone. Of course, Zuko was like that at times, but he was no where near as bad as the Admiral was. Zuko let out a short laugh.

"There is no Avatar around here." He was telling the truth, at least. Hize moved away from Zuko and settled herself by Ziva, leaning against the railing of the ship. She couldn't help but wonder how long this stupid tirade was going to go on for. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared up into the sky.

"Oh really? It would be a shame if you weren't telling me something... and I found out. That would be... treason, wouldn't it?" He asked, tilting his head to the side in mock thought. "And that would be even more disloyalty to your father, yes?" His mouth twitched upwards when Zuko's hands started to steam. Hize sighed and tilted her head back to him.

"Look, we were following the Avatar, then he got away. Okay? Just leave us alone!" She almost begged. She never felt comfortable around the sadistic man. His sharp eyes landed on her and she felt herself flinch slightly, her eyes flickering away from him before returning. There was amusement within them, something that made her blood boil.

"This is why such a task shouldn't be left to banished royalty, and children no less." Zhao sighed out, bringing a hand up to rub his temple. He turned away from the two teenagers and the ever so silent Ziva before moving to leave the ship. "Farewell Prince Zuko, and Lady Hize."

**[Page Break]**

Hize was absolutely relieved to be back on Zuko's ship, successfully away from Zhao and able to change into more appealing attire. She was swift to change out of the Fire Nation robes and into something casual; a pair of black pants that were held together at the ankles by a black band, black flat shoes, and a dark purple cheong-sam styled shirt. Feeling ridiculous, she had also taken her hair out of the Fire Nation bun-tail and into a simple long braid.

That led her to where she sat now, out on the open deck of the ship with her back against the metal railing. She'd been there for several minutes, simply sitting. At the sound of footsteps, she glanced up and gave her best friend a small smile. "Hey, Ziva." She acknowledged him as he sat himself beside her with a small grunt. He sat there for two minutes before he spoke.

"You okay?" He asked with a glance her way. She laughed softly before she pulled her knees to her chest.

"Well, I can't help but think... We've almost caught the Avatar several times now... If we catch him, Zuko and Iroh will go back to the Fire Nation." Ziva nodded along with her.

"Yeah, but you'll go too. The price of your return is the same as Prince Zuko's." He reminded the younger girl. Hize glanced over at him and sighed as she leant back and connected with the metal roughly.

"That's the thing. I won't. The Fire Nation is dangerous... If I return, I'll simply be a pawn for Ozai. I'll have no freedom like I do now. I will be forced on mission after mission." She was bitter, that much was noticable. Ziva watched her for a second as he tried to think of her point of view on the situation. He couldn't really imagine it, as he wasn't even that good of a soldier.

"Why don't you just quit? Stop being the Dragon when you return?" He asked innocently. But that was too simple. Hize brought a hand to her head.

"I would love to, I really would... But... Then my engagement to Zuko would be void." Ziva looked at her curiously and the little warrior felt the need to inform him. "I've always had a liking for Zuko, even when we were little. He reminded me of Lu Ten, Iroh's son. I stayed with Iroh and Lu once when I was just a toddler for several months... I was in love with Lu, you know, that little kid love. After Lu Ten died, all I had left was Zuko. And he reminded me so much of Lu Ten. Both always made sure I was happy and safe, well... Zuko made me feel safe, even though I was the one doing the protecting." She let out a soft laugh before continuing.

"When I was thirteen, Ozai found out from Azula that I had a little crush on Zuko. And, according to Azula, Zuko felt something relatively close to my feelings towards me as well. I've always told myself it was a lie. I've always assumed it was just him liking me because I was his protection, because I could turn against him so easily and there would be nothing he could do... Over the years, I've realized that's not true. He could easily best me in a fight now..." Ziva looked at her in hopes to remind her of her point. She laughed again before shaking her head with a soft 'sorry'.

"Fire Lord Ozai approached my parents with the idea of an arranged marriage between Zuko and I. They agreed, naturally. I was summoned to the Fire Lord the next day. He gave me an offer I couldn't refuse, he would allow me to marry Zuko and be close to him forever as long as he could use my services when ever he required them." Hize glanced over at Ziva and watched him take it in. "I agreed. To this day, I couldn't really imagine where I would be if I hadn't met Zuko. Or if I hadn't revealed who I was to him all those years ago... I'd probably still be in the Fire Nation doing tasks I didn't enjoy." She muttered the last part before looking up at her older friend quickly.

"I've killed people, Ziva. A lot of people. People who didn't deserve it. Men. Women... even a few children. Do you know what that's like?" She asked as her eyebrow furrowed. "I don't want to do it again..." She let out a breath. "I'm not going back to the Fire Nation." She said firmly. Ziva watched her as she tried to fight back the tears that wanted to fall. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder for comfort and brought her close to him.

"Then why help Zuko? Make him be banished forever?" He whispered to her, his gaze up at the sky. Hize laughed as she wiped her tears away.

"I can't do that. All he wants in the world is his honor back, his throne... His nation. I can't deny him that. He deserves it. I'll see this through until the end. But when the time comes for me to choose whether to return with him or not... I guess we're both in for a day of heartbreak." She let out a strained smile. Ziva's golden eyes watched her as she rested her head on his shoulder and simply began to think about things. His hand squeezed her shoulder comforthingly before he rested his head ontop of hers. He couldn't help but think to himself that with her not choosing to return to the homeland... she was making the right decision, as much as it would hurt her and everyone around her.


	16. Repossession

**Author's Note:** Jesus, it's been forever. Honestly, I have no excuse. A lot has happened… A lot of unnecessary and unwanted drama occurred at my home. And it ended up with me moving out of my mother's house in the middle of the school year. I am now living with my brother and I have one more year of high school left before I leave for college. I'm already a few weeks into my summer break and I was roleplaying for a while… Then I saw an Avatar: TLA roleplay. And I remembered you guys. I never honestly forgot. But I was always afraid that ya'll would be mad at me. I've been on a lot, actually, reading Star Trek fan fiction. =/ I'm addicted, now. xD But yeah. Here's chapter sixteen~! Thanks for being patient and I'm INCREDIBLY sorry!

And for all of you who are worried. Mai and Ty Lee are in this. Mai and Zuko's relationship… well, you'll see. Every character in the show is in this fan fiction. And, I'm sorry that this one is so incredibly long... seriously. I think it's the longest one yet?

**[Page Break]**

He was swift, that's for sure. It took Hize some effort to duck the fist that swung at her. She took a sharp intake of breath as she heard it whiz past her. With a steady arm, she pushed the opposing individual away from her and straightened herself, fixing the black cheong-sam shirt with a simple tug. A small smile caressed her lips as she took exactly three steps back and two to the left. One arm was brought out in front of her with her finger splayed open while the other was curved behind her into a fist. Her knees were bent slightly to make a sudden move be easier.

Thank goodness, too. She quickly side stepped to the left to allow an incoming mass shoot past her. She swayed her body to the left to dodge a punch, then to the right to dodge another. Both her hands came flying in front of her as she latched on to a muscular leg that was just about to make contact with her chest. She stared at the appendage for a moment before allowing herself a chance to look over her opponent once again.

Black pants, and pale bare feet… A well-toned pale chest that was void of any clothing and thick arms. His fists were clenched and body as tense, especially with their new position. His face was concentrated, with beads of sweat dripping down the side of his face ever so slowly. His mouth was open as he panted softly to regain his breathing, and his golden eyes were narrowed, his dark eyebrows furrowed. His hair was matted to his forehead from the moisture that pooled from his scalp, much of his hair being rather disheveled and in no particular style; a simple messy shag. But the most prominent thing about this man had to be, again, his chest. It was a bare, pale piece of muscle, but there was a rather unusual aspect to it. A jagged and nasty scar stretching from the left side of the collar bone to his naval in a slash was imprinted onto his fair skin. It was obvious, even to those without a trained eye, that the wound was not properly taken care of when it was first created, most likely sewn together haphazardly by a novice.

With a twitch of her lips, she shoved the leg away from her and thrust her arm forward to slam her palm against the males' chest. He staggered back before quickly regaining his composer and releasing a long breath, steam accompanying it. Hize had every intention of attacking him again, but her body went against her. Her mouth opened suddenly and she exhaled a large amount of air slowly. A yawn. The man let his shoulders slouch at the sudden sign of relaxation and brought a hand up to his hair, running it through his hair carelessly.

"I take it we're done?" He questioned softly. Still yawning, Hize nodded to the man before turning away from him and stalking over towards the edge of the ship they were one. They were currently docked in a small village next to a mountain; a mountain with snow on it, which was something that displeased Hize greatly. He followed her quickly and leaned against the railing next to her, glancing at her every once in a while. The fourth time he went to glance at her, she was looking at him with an eyebrow raised, waiting for him to speak. He let out a sign.

"Sorry." He apologized quickly and she let out a shrug, not really caring.

"It's just annoying, Ziva. If you have something to say, don't stare at me. Just… say it." She closed her eyes as she leaned back against the railing. He paused for a moment to think about whether or not he should ask his question before he pushed all the doubt out of his mind and turned towards her.

"Well… We were talking two nights ago about what you would do when Zuko found the Avatar, right?" He reminded Hize with a question. She quickly glanced around the deck to make sure no one was listening before nodding in confirmation. "Well… If you don't go with him, what are you going to do?" He asked softly, eyes shifted to the water below him. Hize remained silent for almost a full two minutes before she spoke.

"I'm probably going to go study at Ba Sing Se University. Study something, you know?" She glanced up at him, surprised to find his eyes on hers. She raised an eyebrow. "Or I could start my own group of outlaws and spend my time wreaking havoc on innocent villages and running away from bounty hunters. Hell, I could probably become a bounty hunter myself. Or I could start a martial arts school…" She trailed off, tilting her head back towards the darkening blue sky.

"Basically, you have no idea. Got it." She couldn't stop the laugh that left her lips. She kept the smile on her face as she glanced over at him.

"Do I ever have a plan?" She felt the need to rephrase after he gave her a certain look. "Well, do _I_ ever have a plan, not the White Dragon." She mumbled with a soft pout. He smirked at that statement.

"No. You don't. You're a horrible strategist, honestly. That's why you always lose at Pai Sho." He teased softly with a short laugh. She glared at him swiftly before crossing her arms.

"I'll have you know that I've almost beaten Iroh several times now." She said in indignation, provoking Ziva to let out a barking laugh. The two of them were interrupted by another dynamic duo.

"I see you two are having an enjoyable time!" The voice of the one and only Iroh graced the air and Hize lifted her gaze. Iroh and Zuko were approaching them, Iroh's arms crossed pleasantly in front of him with a cheerful gaze upon his face, while Zuko seemed to stalk towards them with a glare, mainly directed towards Ziva. Hize felt her lips twitch into a smirk for a mere second before she wiped it away.

"Indeed." Ziva spoke, bowing shortly to the two royals. "I was just informing Miss Hize that her Pai Sho skills were far from spectacular. Unfortunately for me, she did not take the information to kindly." He let a small smile come across his face. Hize had always marveled at his ability to switch persona so efficiently. One moment he'll be that teasing happy-go-lucky friend of her, then the next he'll be the respectful and polite subordinate to the royal family. Then again, Hize did the same with the White Dragon.

"Really, now?" Iroh was amused, that was clear in his eyes. "As much as she does seem to be improving, she will never be able to best me." He let out a hearty laugh as Zuko simply glared at Iroh, then Ziva. Hize let out a pout before sighing.

"You could show a little faith, Iroh." She chided as she turned away from him in mock anger. He chuckled even more before he cleared his throat.

"Music night is tonight. I was hoping you would play the koto for us, Hize." Iroh gave her a brilliant smile when she glanced back at him. She was silent as she contemplated the idea before she smiled as well.

"I would enjoy playing the koto; it has been quite a while since I have last." She nodded in affirmation. Iroh, who was thoroughly pleased, let out an even more pleased laugh as he threw his head back.

"Then perhaps my young nephew will be willing to play the Tsungi Horn for us tonight!" He was hopeful, that's for sure. Zuko clenched his fists and glared at his Uncle, frustrated.

"I'm not playing the Tsungi Horn! I don't care who's going to be there. I have to find the Avatar. I'm wasting time as it is!" He practically yelled before he stormed off below deck. Hize watched him quietly before she turned her gaze to a now sober Iroh. She blinked in surprise.

"It is getting late. We should all have dinner before we begin the entertainment, do you agree, Hize?" Iroh asked, holding his arm out to Hize. She laughed and took it, glancing over at Ziva.

"You gonna be there too?" She asked, raising a dark eyebrow at her best friend. He shrugged.

"Iunno." He mumbled with his eyes on the ground. She couldn't help but snicker at his sudden hesitancy.

"Don't be a wuss, Ziva. Show up. You don't have to do anything. At least listen to me play, I'll go first so you don't have to stay long." She practically begged him with her eyes. He crumbled instantly.

"Fiiiine." He whined before stalking into the cabin. Hize giggled as Iroh led her inside as well.

**[Page Break]**

Dinner was over and music night had been started for nearly ten minutes now, but Hize hadn't gone up yet. She was sitting in the dining room still, Zuko beside her. She had been trying to coax him into coming to the festivities, however, she was failing miserably.

"Fine, don't go if you don't want to." She said angrily as she stood up from her sitting position. She straightened out her dark violet robes before crossing her arms. "You should show a little support to your crew, you know. They don't have to be here. They can easily leave. Then what will you be left with?" She rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. I'm going to play the koto. Enjoy your time moping over the Avatar. _I'm_ going to have some fun." She turned away from him tensely before exiting the room, leaving the quiet and seething prince behind.

Once outside, she was greeted by the sound of a crewman from the boiler room singing an old love song. She let a smile come across her face as she sat down beside a bored looking Ziva and a content, strumming Lieutenant Jee. She gave both a quick smile before the crewman finished his song. Iroh grinned when he noticed her.

"Ah! Finally! Now you can play us a song! Hize here is quite talented with the koto, just like Prince Zuko with the Tsungi Horn!" He bragged to the crew. Ziva slid the koto across the deck towards her before resting his elbow on his knee, and his chin on his fist. He didn't really want to be here, but the fact that he actually showed up proved his loyalty to Hize's happiness.

'_Like friends should be. Loyal.'_ She bitterly thought before she began to silently adjust the bridges on the koto. She moved a few up and a few back before she plucked them with her fingers gently to test the sound. She nodded to herself before she made herself a bit more comfortable on the ground and closed her eyes, clearing her throat.

Her fingers began to move, creating a delicate melody of short, high strums. It was soft and gentle, a melody to invoke calm or even longing. After a few more strums, she began to sing.

"_A journey lies before me…"_ Her voice was soft and rather quiet, almost as if she was afraid to be singing, which could be counted as a strong possibility. _"With two paths to choose…"_ She opened her eyes and stared down at her koto, watching herself as she strummed.

"_Both of pain, both of happiness…" _She lifted her gaze and glanced around each person. Everyone was listening contentedly. Everyone had their eyes closed save Ziva and Iroh. Both were looking at her, both understood.

"_Neither path I wish to take..." _She heard a soft shuffling, a sound the others wouldn't catch, and she turned her head back to see a figure in the door way of the cabin. A smile graced her lips as she allowed her voice to become stronger.

"_Soon the decision shall be made… Soon we shall be left in heartbreak… Escape in isolation… Running away from my true path…"_ She closed her eyes and strummed a faster tune before singing again.

"_A journey lies before me… neither path I wish to take."_ She let out several more strums before she ended her song. There was an air of silence and Hize noticed the figure leave out of the corner of her eye.

"That was a lovely song, Hize. I am please you could join us tonight!" Iroh exclaimed, clapping the girl on the back as he approached her. In a matter of moments, the newly somber mood moved off to one of entertainment again. Jee began to strum his instrument and Iroh began to sway to the music before he too began to sing. Hize rolled her eyes at his upbeat behavior and let out a soft yawn. She was incredibly tired after training with Ziva from sun rise until nearly sunset. She felt him glance at her and she looked up, an eyebrow raised. His gold eyes were locked into hers.

"I see you've already chosen your path." He said quietly. She nodded her head.

"I already told you that. I'm not going back… I can't." She shook her head, drawing her legs up to her chest as she drowned out Iroh's off-key singing. Ziva gave her a tense smile.

"You can't be too sure. Things can change from now until that moment." He nodded at his statement, pleased with it. Hize opened her mouth to speak before she suddenly turned her head forward, eyes narrowed. Her heightened hearing caught the sound of footsteps. She swiftly stood and turned her body to her right, head tilted back a bit. She had done so just in time to see two Fire Nation guards walk onto the ship, Admiral Zhao behind them. Her lip curled up immediately at the sight of the man, highly displeased.

Her sudden movement caught the attention of everyone and the music, dancing, and singing halted swiftly and all eyes went to where she was staring. She brought her arms up to cross them over her chest as she watched him approach.

"Good evening, General Iroh, Lady Hize." Zhao had that usual smirk on his face, one that just radiated 'I am better than you' to all those around. Hize didn't acknowledge him as her eyes shifted to the two guards that were beginning to walk around the group, one on each side.

"Former general, Admiral." Iroh reminded, a bright smile upon his face. "Is there anything I can do for you this evening?" Sometimes, Hize hated the fact that Iroh could be so polite towards everyone. Of course, he had much more experience in Fire Nation politics than either Zuko or herself had, but she still found it frustrating that he could just grin and bear it towards someone like Zhao.

The Fire Nation Admiral let out a dark chuckle, tossing his head back slightly with a look of triumph. "Actually, yes. Your crew. This is an order, you will surrender your crew to me. All of them." His eyes traveled to each person upon the deck. Hize acted immediately, her hand shooting behind her to grasp Ziva's. They wouldn't take him.

"I see..." Iroh's voice was less jovial, now guarded. "Perhaps we should discuss this with my nephew?" Zhao smirked at that.

"That would be wonderful." His eyes traveled towards the crew on the deck. "All of you are now under my command, get off this ship and follow the guards to my own. We're going to the North Pole." His voice became a bit more sinister at the last sentence, and after that statement, the two guards began to close in around the crew to ensure no escape. Hize, however, kept a grip on Ziva's hand and refused to move. Zhao's eyes shifted towards her.

"Are you defying my orders, Lady Hize?" He asked, crossing his arms over his chest with curl of his lips. She scowled, gripping Ziva's hand tighter to the point where he winced. "I want both of you on my ship, now." He growled.

"As Fire Nation royalty, I respectfully decline your _invitation_ to join your crew. I am a mere Lady-in-Waiting, sir. I will be of no use on the battlefield. This is my... butler." She thought of the top of her head, mentally smacking herself. "I refuse to have him go with you. A lady needs a servant, yes?" She asked, almost daring him to go against her. And he did. He snarled slightly, making a hand gesture. The two guards, still on deck, went towards Ziva.

Hize reacted quickly, pulling her companion towards her and under the incoming guards. She couldn't fight back, however... Zhao couldn't know she was the Dragon, or else he would steal her away too. Iroh watched in sadness as the guards surrounded the incapable Hize and shoved her to the side forcefully. They grabbed Ziva by the arms and began to pull him away. He put up a decent fight, struggling enough to flip one of the guards over his shoulder and to the ground before a swift blow to the side of his neck rendered him unconscious. The still-standing guard waited for the other one to compose himself before the limp body was dragged off of the ship, the rest of the crew watched on. Hize growled and pushed herself up from the ground and ran towards the retreating guards.

An arm caught around her waist and she took in a sharp breath, winded. A deep voice was next to her ear. "I wouldn't do anything that would cause me to change my mind, if I were you. You wouldn't want to... cause trouble for your precious prince, correct?" Zhao asked into her ear. She bit her lip and pushed him away from her, stumbling back two steps. He let out a chuckle before Iroh began to escort him inside. She stood there a moment before bringing her arms up to her chest and wrapping them around herself. She continued to bit her lip in anger and sadness until she felt a warm liquid fall down her cheek. Now she had lost her only friend, her only apprentice...

**[Page Break]**

She walked into Zuko's room at a bad time. Seeing Zhao standing there with Zuko's broadswords... The Blue Spirit's broadswords, brought her heart to a stop. He knew. _He knew!_ And yet he didn't do anything. Only threaten... She was slightly confused. Why didn't he just _do_ something about it? She narrowed her eyes as she shut the door behind her gently, causing Iroh to glance over at her.

"But I have a feeling justice will catch up with him soon.." Zhao walked past Iroh and Zuko, causing Zuko to notice Hize's presence. Hize caught the tail end of his conversation about the Blue Spirit and swiftly moved to the side, away from the approaching Admiral. Zhao stopped at the now open door and spoke again, without turning around.

"General Iroh, Lady Hize... The offer to join my mission still stands. If you change your mind..." He closed the door behind him gently. Hize turned away from the door and to her prince, and eyebrow raised. Zuko let out a rather loud growl before dropping to his knees and slamming his fist on the floor, fire coming out in a puff at the contact. He grit his teeth and closed his eyes, fully frustrated. Iroh shared a glance with her before he slowly slipped out of the room, hoping to catch a bit of conversation with the crew before they departed. She watched him leave and waited for the door to close before she approached Zuko, sliding to her knees in front of him. She said nothing as she watched him shake in anger.

"I'll never find the Avatar now. He's taking my crew. Those... those _traitors_." He growled the word through clenched teeth, his jaw tense. Hize narrowed her eyes and crossed her hands in her lap.

"Don't fool yourself, Zuko. They are not traitors, as you so put it. They cannot defy a Fire Nation Admiral. Unfortunately, he holds power over you." She looked off to the side, staring at the broad swords upon the wall. He let out a frustrated sigh and brought himself upon his knees, flopping back so his shoulders connected with the edge of his bed, legs crossed in front of him and a scowl on his face. Hize looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I don't need them. I can capture the Avatar without them. I don't need anyone." He growled, his arms crossed over his chest. Hize turned towards him fully, quirking her eyebrow once again.

"Oh? You don't need anyone? Then perhaps my services are unneeded upon his vessel. I'm sure Admiral Zhao will be pleased to hear that he has the White Dragon at his disposal." She went to stand, but a warm hand caught her wrist. She peered down at the young prince and caught flashes of his old self. A small smile graced her lips and she moved to sit beside him. She rested her back against the bed and remained silent. His hand was still upon her wrist, not that she minded.

"I need you. I need you and Uncle. Promise me you'll stay here. Promise me you'll help me find the Avatar..." His gold eyes were upon her now. She shifted slightly, not exactly liking the pressure.

"I already told you..." She mumbled, a slight pout upon her face. "I'm with you through this, all of this. No matter what. I'll take the path you choose." She sighed.

"The one of pain, yet happiness?" His tone showed a trace of bitterness. She allowed herself a small smile.

"No matter what I choose, Zuko. There will be suffering, and there will be pleasure." She admitted. "It's only a matter of how much suffering I am willing to put myself through." He said nothing more as his hand slipped away from her wrist.

"I don't want you to be unhappy." He admitted softly, eyes on the metal floor. She tilted her head to look at him, a micro-smile on her face.

"Don't worry, Prince Zuko. I'm perfectly happy where I am now." She confirmed, it was the future that bothered her. He let his mouth twitch slightly, but remained impassive. She let out a sigh before patting his knee gently. "I believe I'm going to go say my farewells to the crew. Would you care to join me?" She asked politely as she stood up, holding her hand out ot him. A look of anger immediately crossed his face and he slapped her hand away, childishly moving onto his bed and crossing his arms.

"No. Go by yourself!" He spat. She felt her eyebrow twitch before she said nothing more and exited the room, closing the door with a bit of force. Whatever, she didn't need him to see the crew off. She could do it on her own.

**[Page Break]**

Almost two hours later, Hize found herself padding softly behind Iroh as he made his way to Prince Zuko's quarters. She was still a little bitter about earlier and followed in silence, a pout upon her face as she stared at the wall in discontent. Iroh glanced back at her and merely chuckled at the sight of his future niece with her lips puckered and her arms crossed, glaring at the passing metal wall. She sure could be a child sometimes. He stopped in front of Zuko's chambers and shared a small look with Hize, causing her to shrug. He opened the door and popped the upper half of his body into the room. Hize stood on her tip-toes and peeked over him, just barely seeing Zuko lying on his bed in relatively the same position as before.

His arms were crossed over his chest and his face, despite having his eyes closed, looked tense and distressed. Hize knew that Zuko was taking this badly and the only way he could actually cope was by being bitter, but that didn't mean that she was going to be happy with it. Not at all. Iroh spoke, causing her gaze to shift from the prince to the general.

"The crew wanted me to wish you safe travels..." Iroh informed the prince. It was true; despite the crew having their fair share of dislike for Zuko, they would all much rather be on Zuko's ship than on Zhao's. They had asked for Hize and Iroh to wish Zuko a safe journey and that hoped that he would find the Avatar.

"Good riddance to those traitors." Zuko spat out, eyes still closed. Hize couldn't bring herself to get anymore angry with him than she already was, he was merely expressing his anger towards Zhao in an illogical way. At least, that's what Iroh told her. Iroh stepped into the room fully and smiled down at his nephew hopefully.

"It's a lovely night for a walk. Why don't you join Hize and I? It would clear your head." He waited for a moment before his smile dropped and he took a step back towards the door.

"Or just stay in your room and sit in the dark. You know, whatever makes you happy." Hize rolled her eyes as she spoke, grabbing Iroh's arm and pulling him out of the room, closing the door roughly. She let out a frustrated sigh before walking down the hall, Iroh beside her.

"You shouldn't get so frustrated with him all the time." He glanced at her. She made no effort to reply as they walked in silence. Once they began to descend the ships ramp, Iroh began to hum the song he had sang earlier at Music Night. Hize felt herself relax a bit more at his constant optimism. As soon as her feet touched the dock, she felt a wind graze against her back, causing her to turn around. She caught sight of a green reptilian parrot flying around Zuko's ship. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion and stopped. Iroh continued to walk, either not noticing that she stopped or choosing to continue on. Hize bit down on her lip for a moment before she closed her eyes and sped up to Iroh's side, slowing down to match his pace.

He was right, it was a nice night out. It was cool, but not cold enough to cause tremors. They followed the path that was right next to the shore, both silent. Hize never found it necessary to engage in a conversation during this pleasant walks, as Iroh always knew what she was going to say. They had this silent, unexplainable understanding of one another. It had been that way since she was a child, the man practically helped raise her.

Her father and mother were always busy with plans for world dominance with the Fire Lord, and Iroh was the closest thing to a godfather that she had. Before she underwent her training to become the Dragon, he and Lu Ten watched her whenever they had the time. Her parents were rather close with the Fire Nation royalty, so it was perfectly natural for her to be in close proximity with any of the royals. However, when her training began... It became more and more of a luxury to spend time with Iroh. She was always training, always working.

Hize was almost positive that Iroh was the first one, other than her parents and Fire Lord Ozai, who knew of her being the Dragon. She never told him, not once. He just always knew. It wasn't too much of a surprise to her when she found out, he was always a perceptive one.

They had been walking for merely ten minutes before it happened. A loud, resounding boom filled the air. Iroh and Hize turned back towards the noise rapidly, seeing Zuko's ship in flames. It had exploded. Zuko's ship at exploded. With Zuko in it. Zuko was still in it!

"Zuko!" Iroh and Hize released before they both took off in a run towards the ship. Hize, with all of her training, was faster. It took her nearly three minutes to get down to the docks, slowing down to a sludging shuffle at the sight. The ship was destroyed. In a huge ball of flames, with little spittles being shot out towards her. She dropped to her knees, staring at the wreckage. Soft footsteps occured behind her and she refused to lift her head.

"Zuko..." Iroh's voice was pained, filled with sadness. Hize bit her lip as she felt a few tears prick at her eyes, which were now focused on the water below. After a moment of staring, she noticed an object floating up. It was blue and white. She took in a breath when she recognized the Blue Spirits mask, her hand reaching down and pulling it out of the water. She brought it to her chest and clutched it tightly, not bothering to hold back the tears any longer.

The next half hour was a blur to her. Iroh was able to move Hize off the dock and onto the beach, letting her sit there and clutch at the mask. His hand was on her shoulder the entire time as he watched the flames of the ship slowly die out into nothing. In darkness, they remained together in a solemn silence. Until a small groan caused them both to look up. It was coming from the dock. Iroh glanced at the distressed warrior before he moved away form her, towards the dock. As he peered underneath it, he let out a gasp. Hize narrowed her eyes.

A moment later, Iroh was pulling up a barely conscious prince and dragging him towards where she sat. Her lip quivered. The prince was blinking rapidly, struggling to become aware. The moment his eyes focused and he sat up, Hize couldn't hold back the impluse. The unmistakable noise of flesh on flesh filled the air and Zuko's cheek now had a decent red print on it.

Nothing was said for the rest of the night from Hize. She was relieved that Zuko was alive, angry that she had overreacted, and bitter towards Zhao. She knew he was behind this. She listened quietly as Iroh and Zuko planned out their next moves. She knew she would be involved, but she also knew that Zhao would get his justice. At her own hands.

**[Page Break]**

The room was silent, something that didn't bother Hize all that much. She didn't really want to hear what _he_ had to say. She didn't even want to see his face. She sat beside Iroh quietly, her gaze on the wooden table before her. She ignored the man across from her as he poured them all some tea. Unfortunately, it was jasmine tea. Hize didn't like jasmine tea. But Zhao didn't know that. Or maybe he did, and he was doing it in spite of her.

"I'm devastated to hear about Prince Zuko." Zhao said with pseudo-solemnity. He turned his head to the side slightly and spoke again. "_Just devastated_." Hize balled her hands into fists in her lap and scowled down. Next to her, Iroh was calm, completely calm.

"The Fire Lord will not be pleased when he learns who was responsible." Hize's mouth quirked upwards. She knew the plan, but it still gave her a satisfaction to know that they were making Zhao nervous.

"You know... who was behind the attack?" Zhao asked over his cup of tea, peering at the two. Iroh gripped the cup of tea in his hand and stared at Zhao evenly. Hize merely glared at the cup of tea that sat before her on the table.

"Yes." Iroh sat his cup down an slammed his fist on the table, a look of anguish on his face as he looked off to the side. "Pirates!" He glanced up at Zhao. "We had a run-in with them a while back." Hize's mouth twitched slightly before she raised her head and noted how Zhao's frown turned into a small smile.

"They wanted revenge." Iroh informed the Admiral, who took a sip of his tea before speaking.

"So. Have you two reconsidered my offer?" He asked in a rather pleasant voice as he sat his cup down. Iroh bowed his head.

"Yes. I accept. It will be an honor to serve as your general." Iroh lifted his cup and called, "To the Fire Nation!" Zhao mimicked him and smiled.

"To victory!" He smirked as they both took a sip before his gaze switched to Hize. "And you, Lady Hize?" He asked, leaning forward slightly.

"I will not be of much service to you, Admiral. I barely have any physical prowess, and I cannot bend." Her gaze dropped as she stood. She bowed to him. "I sincerely thank you for your kindness of allowing me to remain with General Iroh. These are indeed hard times for me, and I take comfort in knowing that I can still be beside an individual I know will help me through this. My only regret is that I cannot help in the capture of the Avatar." She rose as she turned away from Zhao.

"I'm afraid I'm feeling a little tired from the events that have occured. I believe I am going to go lay down..." She said in the best depressed voice she could manage. Which wasn't hard, as she knew that they were very close to catching the Avatar. She then made her way out of the Admiral's tent and towards the one that he had set up for her and Iroh. She noticed a guard watching her carefully, and she knew. She gave him a smile and winked at him, causing the guard to nod his head and move along.


	17. The Explosion

**AN:** So. I had to split The Waterbending Master into two chapters. Because it was 12 pages long. And I didn't wanna make you guys read 12 pages total. xD So yeah. Sorry.

**[Page Break]**

She walked into Zuko's room at a bad time. Seeing Zhao standing there with Zuko's broadswords... The Blue Spirit's broadswords, brought her heart to a stop. He knew. _He knew!_ And yet he didn't do anything. Only threaten... She was slightly confused. Why didn't he just _do_ something about it? She narrowed her eyes as she shut the door behind her gently, causing Iroh to glance over at her.

"But I have a feeling justice will catch up with him soon.." Zhao walked past Iroh and Zuko, causing Zuko to notice Hize's presence. Hize caught the tail end of his conversation about the Blue Spirit and swiftly moved to the side, away from the approaching Admiral. Zhao stopped at the now open door and spoke again, without turning around.

"General Iroh, Lady Hize... The offer to join my mission still stands. If you change your mind..." He closed the door behind him gently. Hize turned away from the door and to her prince, and eyebrow raised. Zuko let out a rather loud growl before dropping to his knees and slamming his fist on the floor, fire coming out in a puff at the contact. He grit his teeth and closed his eyes, fully frustrated. Iroh shared a glance with her before he slowly slipped out of the room, hoping to catch a bit of conversation with the crew before they departed. She watched him leave and waited for the door to close before she approached Zuko, sliding to her knees in front of him. She said nothing as she watched him shake in anger.

"I'll never find the Avatar now. He's taking my crew. Those... those _traitors_." He growled the word through clenched teeth, his jaw tense. Hize narrowed her eyes and crossed her hands in her lap.

"Don't fool yourself, Zuko. They are not traitors, as you so put it. They cannot defy a Fire Nation Admiral. Unfortunately, he holds power over you." She looked off to the side, staring at the broad swords upon the wall. He let out a frustrated sigh and brought himself upon his knees, flopping back so his shoulders connected with the edge of his bed, legs crossed in front of him and a scowl on his face. Hize looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I don't need them. I can capture the Avatar without them. I don't need anyone." He growled, his arms crossed over his chest. Hize turned towards him fully, quirking her eyebrow once again.

"Oh? You don't need anyone? Then perhaps my services are unneeded upon his vessel. I'm sure Admiral Zhao will be pleased to hear that he has the White Dragon at his disposal." She went to stand, but a warm hand caught her wrist. She peered down at the young prince and caught flashes of his old self. A small smile graced her lips and she moved to sit beside him. She rested her back against the bed and remained silent. His hand was still upon her wrist, not that she minded.

"I need you. I need you and Uncle. Promise me you'll stay here. Promise me you'll help me find the Avatar..." His gold eyes were upon her now. She shifted slightly, not exactly liking the pressure.

"I already told you..." She mumbled, a slight pout upon her face. "I'm with you through this, all of this. No matter what. I'll take the path you choose." She sighed.

"The one of pain, yet happiness?" His tone showed a trace of bitterness. She allowed herself a small smile.

"No matter what I choose, Zuko. There will be suffering, and there will be pleasure." She admitted. "It's only a matter of how much suffering I am willing to put myself through." He said nothing more as his hand slipped away from her wrist.

"I don't want you to be unhappy." He admitted softly, eyes on the metal floor. She tilted her head to look at him, a micro-smile on her face.

"Don't worry, Prince Zuko. I'm perfectly happy where I am now." She confirmed, it was the future that bothered her. He let his mouth twitch slightly, but remained impassive. She let out a sigh before patting his knee gently. "I believe I'm going to go say my farewells to the crew. Would you care to join me?" She asked politely as she stood up, holding her hand out to him. A look of anger immediately crossed his face and he slapped her hand away, childishly moving onto his bed and crossing his arms.

"No. Go by yourself!" He spat. She felt her eyebrow twitch before she said nothing more and exited the room, closing the door with a bit of force. Whatever, she didn't need him to see the crew off. She could do it on her own.

**[Page Break]**

Almost two hours later, Hize found herself padding softly behind Iroh as he made his way to Prince Zuko's quarters. She was still a little bitter about earlier and followed in silence, a pout upon her face as she stared at the wall in discontent. Iroh glanced back at her and merely chuckled at the sight of his future niece with her lips puckered and her arms crossed, glaring at the passing metal wall. She sure could be a child sometimes. He stopped in front of Zuko's chambers and shared a small look with Hize, causing her to shrug. He opened the door and popped the upper half of his body into the room. Hize stood on her tip-toes and peeked over him, just barely seeing Zuko lying on his bed in relatively the same position as before.

His arms were crossed over his chest and his face, despite having his eyes closed, looked tense and distressed. Hize knew that Zuko was taking this badly and the only way he could actually cope was by being bitter, but that didn't mean that she was going to be happy with it. Not at all. Iroh spoke, causing her gaze to shift from the prince to the general.

"The crew wanted me to wish you safe travels..." Iroh informed the prince. It was true; despite the crew having their fair share of dislike for Zuko, they would all much rather be on Zuko's ship than on Zhao's. They had asked for Hize and Iroh to wish Zuko a safe journey and that hoped that he would find the Avatar.

"Good riddance to those traitors." Zuko spat out, eyes still closed. Hize couldn't bring herself to get any angrier with him than she already was; he was merely expressing his anger towards Zhao in an illogical way. At least, that's what Iroh told her. Iroh stepped into the room fully and smiled down at his nephew hopefully.

"It's a lovely night for a walk. Why don't you join Hize and I? It would clear your head." He waited for a moment before his smile dropped and he took a step back towards the door.

"Or just stay in your room and sit in the dark. You know, whatever makes you happy." Hize rolled her eyes as she spoke, grabbing Iroh's arm and pulling him out of the room, closing the door roughly. She let out a frustrated sigh before walking down the hall, Iroh beside her.

"You shouldn't get so frustrated with him all the time." He glanced at her. She made no effort to reply as they walked in silence. Once they began to descend the ships ramp, Iroh began to hum the song he had sang earlier at Music Night. Hize felt herself relax a bit more at his constant optimism. As soon as her feet touched the dock, she felt a wind graze against her back, causing her to turn around. She caught sight of a green reptilian parrot flying around Zuko's ship. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion and stopped. Iroh continued to walk, either not noticing that she stopped or choosing to continue on. Hize bit down on her lip for a moment before she closed her eyes and sped up to Iroh's side, slowing down to match his pace.

He was right; it was a nice night out. It was cool, but not cold enough to cause tremors. They followed the path that was right next to the shore, both silent. Hize never found it necessary to engage in a conversation during this pleasant walks, as Iroh always knew what she was going to say. They had this silent, unexplainable understanding of one another. It had been that way since she was a child, the man practically helped raise her.

Her father and mother were always busy with plans for world dominance with the Fire Lord, and Iroh was the closest thing to a godfather that she had. Before she underwent her training to become the Dragon, he and Lu Ten watched her whenever they had the time. Her parents were rather close with the Fire Nation royalty, so it was perfectly natural for her to be in close proximity with any of the royals. However, when her training began... It became more and more of a luxury to spend time with Iroh. She was always training, always working.

Hize was almost positive that Iroh was the first one, other than her parents and Fire Lord Ozai, who knew of her being the Dragon. She never told him, not once. He just always knew. It wasn't too much of a surprise to her when she found out; he was always a perceptive one.

They had been walking for merely ten minutes before it happened. A loud, resounding boom filled the air. Iroh and Hize turned back towards the noise rapidly, seeing Zuko's ship in flames. It had exploded. Zuko's ship at exploded. With Zuko in it. Zuko was still in it!

"Zuko!" Iroh and Hize released before they both took off in a run towards the ship. Hize, with all of her training, was faster. It took her nearly three minutes to get down to the docks, slowing down to a slugging shuffle at the sight. The ship was destroyed. In a huge ball of flames, with little streams being shot out towards her. She dropped to her knees, staring at the wreckage. Soft footsteps occurred behind her and she refused to lift her head.

"Zuko..." Iroh's voice was pained, filled with sadness. Hize bit her lip as she felt a few tears prick at her eyes, which were now focused on the water below. After a moment of staring, she noticed an object floating up. It was blue and white. She took in a breath when she recognized the Blue Spirits mask, her hand reaching down and pulling it out of the water. She brought it to her chest and clutched it tightly, not bothering to hold back the tears any longer.

The next half hour was a blur to her. Iroh was able to move Hize off the dock and onto the beach, letting her sit there and clutch at the mask. His hand was on her shoulder the entire time as he watched the flames of the ship slowly die out into nothing. In darkness, they remained together in a solemn silence. Until a small groan caused them both to look up. It was coming from the dock. Iroh glanced at the distressed warrior before he moved away from her, towards the dock. As he peered underneath it, he let out a gasp. Hize narrowed her eyes.

A moment later, Iroh was pulling up a barely conscious prince and dragging him towards where she sat. Her lip quivered. The prince was blinking rapidly, struggling to become aware. The moment his eyes focused and he sat up; Hize couldn't hold back the impulse. The unmistakable noise of flesh on flesh filled the air and Zuko's cheek now had a decent red print on it.

Nothing was said for the rest of the night from Hize. She was relieved that Zuko was alive, angry that she had overreacted, and bitter towards Zhao. She knew he was behind this. She listened quietly as Iroh and Zuko planned out their next moves. She knew she would be involved, but she also knew that Zhao would get his justice. At her own hands.

**[Page Break]**

The room was silent, something that didn't bother Hize all that much. She didn't really want to hear what _he_ had to say. She didn't even want to see his face. She sat beside Iroh quietly, her gaze on the wooden table before her. She ignored the man across from her as he poured them all some tea. Unfortunately, it was jasmine tea. Hize didn't like jasmine tea. But Zhao didn't know that. Or maybe he did, and he was doing it in spite of her.

"I'm devastated to hear about Prince Zuko." Zhao said with pseudo-solemnity. He turned his head to the side slightly and spoke again. "_Just devastated_." Hize balled her hands into fists in her lap and scowled down. Next to her, Iroh was calm, completely calm.

"The Fire Lord will not be pleased when he learns who was responsible." Hize's mouth quirked upwards. She knew the plan, but it still gave her a satisfaction to know that they were making Zhao nervous.

"You know... who was behind the attack?" Zhao asked over his cup of tea, peering at the two. Iroh gripped the cup of tea in his hand and stared at Zhao evenly. Hize merely glared at the cup of tea that sat before her on the table.

"Yes." Iroh sat his cup down and slammed his fist on the table, a look of anguish on his face as he looked off to the side. "Pirates!" He glanced up at Zhao. "We had a run-in with them a while back." Hize's mouth twitched slightly before she raised her head and noted how Zhao's frown turned into a small smile.

"They wanted revenge." Iroh informed the Admiral, who took a sip of his tea before speaking.

"So. Have you two reconsidered my offer?" He asked in a rather pleasant voice as he sat his cup down. Iroh bowed his head.

"Yes. I accept. It will be an honor to serve as your general." Iroh lifted his cup and called, "To the Fire Nation!" Zhao mimicked him and smiled.

"To victory!" He smirked as they both took a sip before his gaze switched to Hize. "And you, Lady Hize?" He asked, leaning forward slightly.

"I will not be of much service to you, Admiral. I barely have any physical prowess, and I cannot bend." Her gaze dropped as she stood. She bowed to him. "I sincerely thank you for your kindness of allowing me to remain with General Iroh. These are indeed hard times for me, and I take comfort in knowing that I can still be beside an individual I know will help me through this. My only regret is that I cannot help in the capture of the Avatar." She rose as she turned away from Zhao.

"I'm afraid I'm feeling a little tired from the events that have occurred. I believe I am going to go lay down..." She said in the best depressed voice she could manage. Which wasn't hard, as she knew that they were very close to catching the Avatar. She then made her way out of the Admiral's tent and towards the one that he had set up for her and Iroh. She noticed a guard watching her carefully, and she knew. She gave him a smile and winked at him, causing the guard to nod his head and move along.

**[Page Break]**

**A/N:** Honestly, I hate this story now. It's stupid. At least, I think it is. Hize's such a Mary-Sue, man. She's all, "Oh, I love you Zuko. Oh, I hate you Zuko. Oh, the Avatar. Oh, Ziva. Oh, blahblahblah." /grumble/ But, I'll still finish it. I am sorry it took so long. A lot has gone down in the past few months. But, I'm rather close to the end of the first book.


	18. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**Hello. I know it's been a very, very, /very/ long time since I've even updated or looked at this story. But I come with decent news for any fans of the story.**

**I will be continuing this, in a way. I will be rewriting it completely and I'll be separating it by book. I'm not sure when this will be done because I'm working full-time and my free time is generally spent elsewhere than ; but I will be continuing this so don't give up hope.**

**I'll leave what's already done of this story up so anyone can read it and then I'll delete it when I start adding out the new, rewritten version; which will be under the same name.**

**Thank you for being patient~**


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